A new Washington Post-ABC News poll finds nearly seven in 10 Americans have a favorable impression of Pope Francis (69 percent), a sharp increase from attitudes toward his predecessor Pope Benedict’s 54 percent mark in February. A major part of this shift came from political liberals, who were least approving of Benedict but are now among Francis’ strongest supporters.

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Landrieu trumpets proposed Obamacare fix in first ad

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) touts her legislative push to allow Americans losing their health insurance under Obamacare to keep their plans in a new television ad released Wednesday.

The commercial, Landrieu's first of the 2014 cycle, includes footage of an interview in which the Democrat calls on President Obama to live up to his long-standing refrain that all Americans can keep their plans if they so choose.

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House GOP leaders defend new budget deal

House Republican leaders defended a new bipartisan budget agreement Wednesday, as some conservatives and liberals voiced objections to an $85 billion compromise that would fund federal agencies through the fall of 2015.

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HOLYWOOD HEADLINES

'Jane Got a Gun' Writer to Make Directorial Debut With 'Vivien Hasn’t Been Herself Lately'

Aldamisa Entertainment and Before The Door Pictures will produce the horror romance.

Brian Duffield, the writer behind blacklist script Your Bridesmaid's a Bitch and upcoming project Jane Got a Gun, will make his directorial debut with the horror-romance Vivien Hasn’t Been Herself Lately. Aldamisa Entertainment and Neal Dodson, Corey Moosa and Zachary Quinto's Before The Door Pictures will produce.

Duffield, who is currently writing Summit's YA sequel Insurgent, also wrote Vivien Hasn't Been Herself Lately. The film follows a married couple as they deal with a supernatural entity. The project is currently casting.

Aldamisa International's evp of Sales, Eric Min, will spearhead worldwide presales commencing in Berlin.

"Vivien has always been a project close to my heart, and I couldn't be more excited to be working with such phenomenal producers as Neal, Corey, Zachary and Nicki," said Duffield in a statement. "Their dedication to making unique, character driven films makes them the perfect partners to go on this adventure with."

Before The Door Pictures most recently produced JC Chandor's film All is Lost, starring Robert Redford. They are currently in production on Chandor's third film, A Most Violent Year.  Aldamisa currently has two films in post: Jon Favreau’s Chef and Frank Miller’s Sin City 2. 

Duffield is repped by Gersh and Circle of Confusion, while Before the Door Pictures is repped by CAA and attorney Randy Manis. Jere Hausfater and Philip Elway negotiated the deal on behalf of Aldamisa.

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'The German Doctor' Sweeps Argentine Academy Awards

Lucia Puenzo’s film about Joseph Mengele wins 10 Sur Awards, including best director and best lead actor for Alex Brendemühl.

BUENOS AIRES – The German Doctor was the big winner at the Argentine Film Academy awards ceremony last night in Buenos Aires, where it picked up 10 Sur Awards including best film and best director for Lucia Puenzo.

Argentina’s bid for an Oscar nom in the Foreign Language Film category, The German Doctor also picked up best actor in a leading role for Alex Brendemühl, and 7 other statutes for best makeup, editing, art direction, costume design, breakthrough performance by an actress, supporting actor, and supporting actress for Elena Roger.

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Produced by Historias Cinematograficas, the film portrays a fictional story based on true events, about Nazi criminal Josef Mengele (played by Brendemuhl) and the time he spend in Argentina hiding after WWII. In the story adapted from Puenzo’s own novel, Mengele meets a local family in Southern Argentina and becomes obsessed with their young daughter, to whom he secretly delivers a genetic treatment.

Oscar winner’s Juan Jose Campanella’s Foosball, a 3D animated pic with the highest budget ever for a local production, picked 4 Sur awards, including best original score, sound design, cinematography, and adapted screenplay.

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Corazon de Leon, starring local comedian Guillermo Francella, won Best Actress in a Leading Role and Breakthrough Performance by a Male Actor.

Jose Luis Garcia’s The Girl From the South, about South Korean activist Lim Sukyung, won best documentary, while Daniel Gimelberg’s Before grabbed Best Opera Prima.

The original Argentine Film Academy of Motion Arts and Science was founded in 1941 during the country’s golden era of film production, and later banned by the dictatorship in 1955. It was re-founded in Buenos Aires in 2004, and is currently headed by Juan Jose Campanella.

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Dubai Film Fest: Mark Ruffalo, Rooney Mara Helm Charity Gala Dinner

"It felt like a really fitting way to remember him and pay tribute to him," said Naomie Harris of the festival’s "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom" the night before. "It was great to have so many people turn out."

DUBAI -- Rooney Mara, Mark Ruffalo and Naomie Harris added a splash of star power to the Dubai Film Festival’s annual charity gala dinner, One Night To Change Lives, held in collaboration with Oxfam to raise money for the crisis in Syria.

PHOTOS: The Scene at THR's 2013 Women in Entertainment Breakfast

Mara, who attended the same event last year, was once again making a flying visit to the city, saying she hadn’t had enough time to see any of the films screening at the festival, now in its 10th edition.

"I haven’t even been to the top of that," she said pointing to the 830-metre-tall Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower that provided the spectacularly looming backdrop to the evening. "But I am actually scared of heights."

Ruffalo – in attendance with his wife, Sunrise Coigney – was another brief guest, saying he was flying back to the U.S. immediately following the event, reportedly to attend his daughter’s Christmas pageant.

"We’re here to support Oxfam and the two million refugees in Lebanon," he told reporters, adding that he chose the charity because of its low overheads. “It’s one of the best run charities. No one does it better than Oxfam. I'm hoping we'll break the $2 million barrier tonight."

Ruffalo said that he was presenting one of the auction items, flights and tickets to the premiere of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, courtesy of his "dear friend" and Avengers co-star Scarlett Johansson. He read out a letter from Johansson urging him to use his "handy wit and charm to make all my begging to Marvel worth it." The prize eventually went for $50,000.

Among the other items up for auction were a Bond-themed Aston Martin Vanquish (which was sold for $430,000) and a clapperboard used on the set of Skyfall ($25,000).

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Continuing the 007 theme was Harris, breaking the mold by staying in Dubai more than one day, having attended the festival’s gala screening of Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom the night earlier. Coinciding with Nelson Mandela’s memorial in South Africa, organizers opted to pay tribute to the statesman by keeping the screening a low-key affair, with candles instead of the usual bright lights on the carpet and press kept away.

"It felt like a really fitting way to remember him and pay tribute to him," she said. "It was great to have so many people turn out."

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Dubai Film Connection Dishes Out Over $115,000 to Arab Filmmakers

DIFF Awards $25,000 each to Leyla Bouzid, Ahmed Ibrahim and Ghada Terawi in this year's round of awards.

The Dubai International Film Festival (DIFF) organizers dished out over $25,000 to the winners of a series of prizes for projects participating in its Dubai Film Connection (DFC), a co-production market that pairs projects by regional film professionals with international producing and funding bodies.

The awards of over $115,000 represent three Dubai International Film Festival awards of $25,000, as well as cash prizes from international organizations including French government body Centre National du Cinema et de l’Image Anime, AFTE, and the New Century filmmaker award of $10,000 for a filmmaker who aspires to usher in a new and unconventional cinematic vision in the Arab world.

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That prize went to a project named Bastard from Uda Benyanima.

DIFF awards of $25,000 went to Leyla Bouzid's God Protect My Daughter, Ahmed Ibrahim's Kharouf and The Forgotten from Ghada Terawi.

DIFF managing director Shivani Pandya said: "Since the DFC’s inception in 2007, 35 projects have been completed and a further five in various stages of production -- an excellent ratio for any project market, but even more so in an emerging film market where the industry is not mature. We recognized elements that were lacking in our regional industry and designed the DFC to unleash the potential of Arab cinema."

The cash prizes at the DFC aim to give the chosen projects a shot in the arm for production.

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'12 Years a Slave' Leads a Soundtrack Revival

Between "Saving Mr. Banks," "Inside Llewyn Davis" and the "Hunger Games" franchise, film studios are providing a rare fourth quarter bump for the music industry.

This article first appeared on billboard.com.

Film studios are providing a rare fourth quarter in which honest-to-god musical history is explored in fact-based scripted films. Saving Mr. Banks, the story of how Walt Disney turned the Mary Poppins stories into a musical with Richard and Robert Sherman, and Inside Llewyn Davis, a fictional ramble through Greenwich Village's pre-Bob Dylan folk scene, are both stellar examples of creative storytelling driven by existing songs. A less obvious member of this new wave is 12 Years a Slave. The film's soundtrack, which hit stores Nov. 11, features fiddle-driven Americana instrumentals mingling with new songs from John Legend, Alicia Keys, Gary Clark Jr., Alabama Shakes and others inspired by the film.

12 Years a Slave is the true story of Solomon Northrup, a free-born fiddler from Saratoga, N.Y., who is kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841. The violin evolves from family provider to sanctuary to object of torment as the film progresses; waltzes and Virginia reels butt up against spirituals and work songs. Nicholas Britell, through composing and arranging traditional tunes, was responsible for at least a dozen cues in the film, all of them based on the music of the mid-1800s.

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"The research focused on two areas," the pianist/composer says. "What fiddle tunes would an African-American play in New York in 1841 and, even bigger, the spirituals and field songs. Those wouldn't be recorded until the 1930s, almost a hundred years after [the film's time period]. The first musical notations of them came in after the Civil War, but in the preface of nearly every [book], they mention how difficult it was to write Western notation for the many African rhythmic elements and diverse sounds that did not fit Western melodic and harmonic structures."

Britell, who was involved from the beginning of the shooting, and director Steve McQueen focused on the functionality of the music, and how the cadences of songs coordinated with workers' movements in cotton and sugar cane fields. Sparse and powerful was Britell's objective, and research indicated biblical verses had begun to show up in field songs at the time. "[The slaves] had to lose themselves in the music to keep their focus and persist through the struggle," he says. "I looked to fiddle tunes to add levity and contrast with the spiritual, which spoke much more to the truth."

Credit Columbia Records for seeing a soundtrack opportunity that truly enhances the musicality of the film and extends the relationship between Northrup's world, related post-emancipation music and such contemporary acts as Clark and Cody Chestnutt. Tellingly, executive album producer John Legend connects folk music and spirituals with tunes from jazz, Broadway and the pens of Keys and Chris Cornell. Britell's "My Lord Sunshine (Sunrise)," sung by David Hughey and Roosevelt Credit, will receive an awards campaign.

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Nonesuch has joined with CBS Films in promoting the music of Inside Llewyn Davis as a companion piece, and Disney is connecting with music aficionados by offering the Sherman brothers' demos of Mary Poppins songs in its deluxe soundtrack to Saving Mr. Banks. But they are easy sells compared with 12 Years a Slave, which isn't an easy film to watch; there's no visceral joy to be gleaned from listening to the soundtrack and associating it with the movie's brutal images. But its soundtrack offers a wider range in the listening experience, connecting past to present and including elements of Hans Zimmer's score that amplify the horror of Northrup's reality.

"Inspired by" soundtracks, generally outdated, are often little more than marketing tools, though there are intriguingly curated exceptions, like the two Hunger Games albums. In the rare case of 12 Years a Slave -- which was just nominated for four SAG Awards -- the music elevates the storytelling and becomes a vital listen.

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Mexican Singer Gloria Trevi Moves to Block Biopic About Her Controversial Life

Academy Award winner Barrie Osborne is co-producing "Gloria," which is shooting in Mexico and Brazil.

MEXICO CITY – Lawyers representing Mexican pop icon Gloria Trevi have sent a cease-and-desist letter to the producers of the Mexican biopic Gloria for use of an "unauthorized" script about the singer-songwriter's life.

Shooting on Gloria (working title) began on Nov. 29, several weeks after Trevi told Mexican media that she had not authorized the story. Mexico's Rio Negro is producing alongside Oscar-winning Lord of the Rings producer Barrie Osborne, Alan Curtiss (Master and Commander: Far Side of the World) and Ocean Films Brasil.

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Representing Trevi, Los Angeles-based law office King, Holmes, Paterno & Berliner said in a recent statement: "The project is being developed without script authorization on behalf of Gloria Trevi. In addition, the limited authorization that might have existed under contract has expired and it was not and will not be renewed by Gloria."

The film's producers said Trevi signed a notarized contract allowing for the biopic's production, including musical rights.

"The contract is not subject to script authorization on behalf of Gloria Trevi; in fact she read the screenplay in 2010, was fully in agreement and even passed along some notes which have since been included," a producers' statement said.

Often dubbed the "Mexican Madonna" for her provocative lyrics and edgy performances in the 1990s, Trevi's career came crashing down in the late '90s after she and her former manager were accused of luring young girls into a cult-like pornographic ring. Trevi went on the lam and was later arrested in Brazil, where she was held in a prison there for more than four years. She was released in 2004 when a court found her innocent on charges of kidnapping, rape and corruption of minors.

Trevi returned to Mexico and staged a successful career comeback.

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Gloria marks the directorial debut of Swiss filmmaker Christian Keller. Sofia Espinosa, who appeared in the HBO prison drama Capadocia, plays Trevi.

"The production does not wish to stir up controversy on the matter," the producers said, "but it does wish to make clear that it has every right to proceed in the making of this film and to proceed with its commercialization accordingly."

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Jason Clarke in Talks for 'Terminator' Reboot

Alan Taylor is directing the reboot for Paramount, Annapurna Pictures and Skydance.

Jason Clarke just may be the man to save the human race.

Clarke has the offer and is in talks to play the role of human rebel leader John Connor in the Terminator reboot being made by Paramount, Annapurna Pictures and Skydance, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed.

The project is in the early casting stages and is seeking actors to fill in the iconic roles created by the early James Cameron-Arnold Schwarzenegger sci-fi movies where robots and artificial intelligence seek to exterminate humanity.

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Schwarzenegger is back and the role of Connor is in the midst of being decided between Emilia Clarke and Brie Larson, both of whom tested in November.

The project will also look to cast its Kyle Reece, the resistance fighter who travels back in time and end up fathering Connor.

Clarke has wrapped several movies since  breaking out with last year’s Zero Dark Thirty, with Dawn of the Planet of the Apes among them.  He is also due to star in Universal’s Everest movie.

Clarke is repped by CAA.

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Hollywood Reporter's Women Breakfast: Oprah Winfrey, Maria Shriver, Sherry Lansing Bring Star-Packed Room to Tears

Two inner-city students in THR's Hollywood Mentorship program were awarded full scholarships to Loyola Marymount University in front of a star-studded audience -- including Maria Shriver, Demi Lovato, Sherry Lansing and Jane Fonda -- at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

The Hollywood Reporter gathered some of the biggest names in the entertainment industry Wednesday morning at the Beverly Hills Hotel for the 22nd annual Women in Entertainment breakfast to honor the Power 100 and present Oprah Winfrey with a leadership award named for former Paramount and 20th Century Fox exec Sherry Lansing.

Lansing took the stage at the packed event, sponsored by Lifetime, Gucci, Samsung Galaxy, Audi, Roberto Coin, Guggenheim, City National Bank, the Gersh Agency, Loyola Marymount University and the Entertainment Industry Foundation, to speak about Winfrey, whom she called one of her personal idols.

"You conduct your life in a way that has inspired all of us," she said.

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Winfrey's longtime friend Maria Shriver took the stage for a funny and touching introduction, including a poem she had written titled "Becoming," before bringing her friend to the stage.

"That beats a eulogy, I gotta tell you," confessed Winfrey, dabbing at her eyes while getting a hearty laugh from the crowd. "You're still alive to hear it!"

Winfrey's words visibly moved a crowd that included A+E president and CEO Nancy Dubuc, A+E chairman Abbe Raven, Sony Pictures Entertainment co-chair Amy Pascal, DreamWorks Studios CEO Stacey Snider, NBC's Jennifer Salke, Universal Television's Bela Bajaria, DreamWorks' Jeffrey Katzenberg, WME's Ari Emanuel and The Butler director Lee Daniels. Past Sherry Lansing Leadership Award recipient Jane Fonda also attended the event, along with Girls' Allison Williams, Mandy Moore, Modern Family's Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Scandal's Darby Stanchfield, model-actress Molly Sims, actress Judy Greer, Glee's Naya Rivera, Kris Jenner, Khloe Kardashian, Kim Kardashian and her fiance, Kanye West.

After welcoming speeches from The Hollywood Reporter editorial director Janice Min and senior vp and publisher Lynne Segall, Lansing introduced a moving video highlighting THR’s Hollywood Mentorship program, produced in cooperation with the Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles. The program pairs some of the industry's leading women with underprivileged high school students, all of whom will also receive $10,000 scholarships to the colleges of their choice. As a special surprise this year, presenter Demi Lovato revealed that two of the mentees were each awarded four-year, full-ride scholarships to Loyola Marymount University -- each with a value of $200,000.

"My favorite definition of power is 'strength over time,' " Winfrey told the crowd, saying that Lansing had carved out a phenomenal career in a male-dominated industry and comparing that to her own struggles to make the OWN network successful. The honor, she confessed, "brought great reflections" for her.

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter's 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

Winfrey's inspirational speech ended with strong words encouraging everyone to use their own power for good works.

"How do you use your power to elevate the life of somebody else?" she said.

While guests enjoyed spinach and feta frittatas, roasted potatoes and fruit salad, Jimmy Kimmel greeted the crowd, describing it as a "sea of perfect blowouts," and, in a reference to West's stage-crashing MTV Video Music Awards moment with Taylor Swift, warned the rapper and fashion impresario: "Don't even try to take Oprah's award away."

"It's a recognition of how women have contributed to the industry -- and not in a small way," Raven told THR of the event. "Women are running some of the major organizations in this business and are doing it well."

Added actress Ahna O'Reilly: "I'm excited any time we get to be around and celebrate strong and intelligent women and especially in this business. And, of course, Oprah!"

The event follows the publication of THR's Women in Entertainment special issue, which ranks the 100 most powerful women in entertainment. Past recipients of the Sherry Lansing Leadership Award have included Fonda, Meryl Streep, Helen Mirren, Jodie Foster, Halle Berry, Glenn Close and Barbara Walters.

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Trailer Report: 'Spider-Man' Bests 'X-Men' and 'Captain America'

The coming attraction for the Andrew Garfield-led sequel about Marvel's popular webslinger scored more YouTube views than any other comic-based movie this year.

Primus inter pares. It's a Latin phrase that means "first among equals" -- and so we have a first among the trifecta of Marvel Comics-based blockbuster franchise entries coming out next summer. 

The debut trailer for Amazing Spider-Man 2 scored 19.7 million YouTube views in its first week out, according to Internet monitoring service Zefr. 

Amazing Spider-Man 2 slightly outpaced X-Men: Days of Future Past's 18.9 million first-week views and Captain America: Winter Soldier's 17.6 million.

Spider-Man: primus inter pares. 

Amazing Spider-Man 2, which stars Andrew Garfield as everyone's favorite webslinger and Emma Stone as his love interest, opens May 2, 2014. X-Men: Days of Future Past, which stars, well, just about everybody who was ever in an X-Men movie, opens May 23, 2014. Chris Evans' Captain America: Winter Soldier arrives the month before, on April 4. 

Not only does this represent three of Marvel's most beloved comic franchises competing against on another, but it represents a battle between three studios: Sony controls Spider-Man, Fox X-Men and Disney Captain America. 

In the second slot was 300: Rise of an Empire trailer No. 2 with 3.5 million views, followed by Amazing Spider-Man 2 international trailer No. 1 (3.2 million), Pompeii trailer No. 1 (1.8 million) and Her trailer No. 2 (1.1 million) in the fifth spot. All four trailers debuted this week. 

The bottom five slots were: The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug No. 1, X-Men: Days of Future Past No. 1, The Hobbit No. 2, Noah No. 1 and Sabotage No. 1, with 539,621 YouTube views to take the tenth spot. 

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, the second movie in Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation of the beloved J.R.R. Tolkien classic, opens Dec. 20. The movie's first trailer has recorded more than 36 million views since its debut in June -- the most lifetime views of any on the top 10 list.  

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Having It All: 10 Ways Hollywood's Power Women Make It All Work

Super-busy A-list producers, studio executives, agents and managers swear by these strategies for work, life, children and sanity success.

This story first appeared in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue.

If you're a working mother in this or any other industry, and you're looking for a magical app or shared calendar that will help you find the correct equilibrium between work and home life -- forget social life! -- you won't find it here, because it doesn't exist. We're all rolling calls in the car on the way home from the office. We're all texting at traffic lights (but not when the kids are in the car, right?). We are all very grateful for the domestic help we've been lucky to find and fold into our families. We are all not going to the yoga class we so badly want and need to attend. We are all sure we're not doing this right.

But if you're looking for perspective on how to handle the guilt and which way to wiggle on the choices you do have, well, you've come to the right place. "I like to say my job has flex hours," cracks UTA's Louise Ward, who has three children and reps Channing Tatum and Colbie Smulders. "Twenty-four of them a day!"

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter's 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

Embrace the chaos because you have no choice

When CBS Films co-president Terry Press, a married mother of 14-year-old twins, went to stores in Beverly Hills (where she lives) with a six-page, single-spaced document in August looking for holiday gifts, salespeople laughed at her. She didn't care. She was just hoping to find one gift that would accommodate at least 12 people. Yet, as of this printing, not one gift had been procured. "There just hasn't been an hour," she says.

Notes FX senior vp series development Nicole Clemens, who is married to writer Vaun Wilmott and resides in Malibu with their sons, ages 6 and 4: "I'm Lucy in the chocolate factory. Two sports schedules, two playdate schedules. This is how it is for me right now."

Surround yourself with people you really trust

"On every movie I've produced, I've had a business partner," says The Hunger Games producer Nina Jacobson, whose kids are 15, 13 and 7, and who comes home to them and her wife from the set three out of four weekends of a domestic shoot -- two out of four of an international one. "They have to cover for you when you're not there." Plus, she says, she has a "kick-ass assistant."

People to rely on are doubly important at home. "The key ingredient is a great partner," says Jacobson. "It's knowing that when the kids aren't home with Mom, they're still home with Mom."

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Outsource what you can

Clemens recently hired a business manager to pay the bills and do tax prep. "I always thought that was a luxury item," she says. "But it's been three weeks, and I see it's a total necessity. My husband and I didn't have an hour to sit down to talk about bills."

Adds Press, "I don't do my own travel or my own laundry." You can also find her at Subway having sandwiches made for the lunches she packs on "more days than I'd like to admit."

UTA's Ward has a babysitter who helps with homework (she and husband William, a Roar Management founding partner, have two boys, 10 and 9, and a 6-year-old girl) and a housekeeper who gets a meal plan, shops and cooks. "My nanny is very involved," adds CAA's Tracy Brennan (who is a single mother to 6-year-old Dash while repping Jennifer Lawrence and Kerry Washington). "My nanny is my partner. She remembers when it's spirit day or when the lunch has to be in a brown bag for a field trip." Seconds FX's Clemens: "My nanny is the key; she gets it all done. She's like our wife."

Optimize your technology

"I marvel how women did this before the Internet," says Brennan, whom you can find in the middle of the night online, signing up her 6-year-old for sports leagues, researching coaches and ordering uniforms and supplies. "If I had to go around town for all this or even had to order it during office hours, it would kill my day."

Brennan fully works the apps on her phone: WAZE, which gives her real-time traffic-avoidance suggestions; and Facetime and Skype, which allow her and Dash to see each other when she's away. As for Jacobson: "I use my technology to organize me." She doesn't procrastinate when it comes to calendaring and works the reminder and checklist functions on her phone so that her mind isn't weighed down with extraneous details and what-am-I-forgetting twinges. "It's a blessing and a curse because you have to know when to stop," she says.

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You don't want to take tech too far

UTA's Ward never will forget the day years ago that her toddler son came over to her and her phone and asked if he could "play with my work," she remembers. "I was horrified. I realized I couldn't allow the kids to see my phone as an extension of myself." Since then, she doesn't ever let them see her take a call. "I live two miles from my office. The pull of both jobs is so compelling and important, but you have to be 100 percent focused on each of them." Adds Clemens: "I never walk into the house on the phone. I'll go around the block a few times if I'm still on a call."

Jacobson also draws a line. "I try to employ a no-technology rule in the car for them and for me other than listening to audio books or music," she says. "There are significant transgressions, but we try. I love to listen to Radiolab and books on tape."

Ask for what you need

Recently, Brennan had to ask her son's teacher if she wouldn't mind starting parent-teacher conferences at 7:30 a.m. instead of 8:30. "She said, 'No problem,' " says Brennan. "People are always willing to help. Women have this reputation for not helping each other, but I've had the opposite experience. There are all these moms at school and in my neighborhood who are so helpful to me."

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Actively cultivate the time you do have with the family

Like other working mothers, Clemens doesn't have the amount of time she wishes she did for her kids, but she does have a system: "We literally make Mommy or Daddy time," she says. Each child gets a half-hour (whenever time allows) to close the door with a parent in the room and do whatever the kid wants. They also make it a point to eat together on weekends and each morning.

Ward used to think that eating together was crucial and that time like that would prevent the kids from becoming drunks and drug addicts, but she soon learned that she only had the kids for as long as the food interested them. Now she's figured out some diabolical games to keep her young children at the table longer. One of them: She'll put 10 odds and ends -- salt shaker, ketchup bottle, etc. -- on the table, then make them close their eyes, take one away and have them guess what's gone.

Ward also warns not to underestimate the power of a long drive home. "I find the best time to connect with the kids is if you can pick them up once or twice a week. If you're in their face, you get a 'fine' on how things are going. But facing down endless traffic on the 405, not looking you in the eye, that's when they talk."

Jacobson does school pickup and drop-off when she's around. "On days they don't have school, they come to the set."

Make taking care of yourself a non-negotiable

Clemens recently returned to a sport she loves but had abandoned: show jumping. It didn't make sense that adding a leisure pursuit would help her stay on track or even accomplish more, but now she doesn't question it: "The smartest thing I did this year was go back to riding horses." And while she still rarely gets to see her family and friends, waking up at 6 a.m. on weekends and driving out to Hidden Valley has been worth it. "The drive and the riding -- it's like meditation and grounds me," she says.

Jacobson loves bicycling but can't manage to do it at home, so she takes her bike on location with her.

As for self-care, house calls can become a priority. Brennan always remembers that there are hairdressers, manicurists and facialists who will come to her house. "You may have to pay more, and you may not get to have your favorite person anymore, but you have to choose people who are flexible," she says. Brennan also sees a Pilates instructor near her home who has "very flexible hours." Once or twice a month, Clemens will have a masseuse come over at 8:45, after the kids are in bed.

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Exercise your power of 'no'

Yes, learn to say no. "Don't forget you're dealing with people who never have heard no," says Press. "It's part of the biggest problem in our culture and our industry that people react to it like it's a racial slur. You have to be able to do say no."

Family can be a good motivator -- and excuse. "With a baby, you work so much smarter," says Renee Tab, president of Sentient Entertainment who reps filmmakers like David Cronenberg. Tab says she also used her pregnancy to "cleanse" herself of clients who weren't quite what she wanted anymore. "You're just so much more strategic about what your function is and how to get there. This is my business, and I've got to execute."

Accept the things you can't do anymore, says Tab: "I don't have drinks, late meetings or dinners. That's what my 20s were for. Now, I have to be laser-focused and home for dinner."

Remember to enjoy the small wins

"There's a feeling like you've gotten away with something if you've heard an entire This American Life," says Jacobson, who also cherishes time to walk the dog.

Recently, Clemens had a revelation: "One of the things about getting older is that you realize there's no later or 'there,' " she says. "We're 'here.' The list is never going to be checked off. Everything that has to get done will get done. You have to trust your process." And, she adds, trust others: "Everyone around me has a kid. We're all grown-ups. Everyone knows we're doing our job and then some, so taking a half-hour to go to a school play isn't going to affect your job."

Tab explains that a fair amount of weighing of professional perceptions against personal realities does occur: "As a woman [in the industry], you have to be concerned about how much you put out there," she says. "But family comes first. If you need to go to the pediatrician appointment, go. I wouldn't announce that I was in a baby music class, but everyone gets that health comes first."

And now that you've leaned in so hard on the job, you also need to lean in on the guilt, too. "You have to be able to tolerate feeling guilty most of the time," says Jacobson. "You have to sort of accept that it's a part of being able to have both a job and a family you're devoted to."

Notes Press: "I would love to live in a world where I think I'm a great wife, mother and executive -- in that order. But I guarantee you, it's like a slot machine. You can get two cherries in a day. Three, maybe, but I don't think so. Every day, I pull the arm and hope for the best."

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Top Directors Reveal How Female Film Editors Shaped Their Movies

Martin Scorsese and Jason Reitman rely on Thelma Schoonmaker and Dana Glauberman, respectively, who are making their own Hollywood history.

This story first appeared in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue.

None of them are household names, but they literally helped shape many of the most significant movies ever made, including The Birth of a Nation (1915), The Wizard of Oz (1939), All About Eve (1950), Singin' in the Rain (1952), Lawrence of Arabia (1962), Jaws (1975), Star Wars (1977) and E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial (1982), plus this year's Blue Jasmine, Labor Day, Star Trek Into Darkness and The Wolf of Wall Street. They are female film editors, and if you flip the switch in dark cutting rooms, you'll find them helping take films to places the directors themselves didn't imagine.

Margaret Booth, who started under director D.W. Griffith, was later so valued by Irving Thalberg, MGM's head of production, he coined the term "film editor" to replace the more menial-sounding "cutter." Dede Allen was fired for piecing together the bloody shootout at the end of Arthur Penn's Bonnie and Clyde (1967) by studio head Jack Warner but then was put back on the job by producer-star Warren Beatty out of his own pocket. She became the first film editor to receive a solo mention in the opening credits of a film. Thelma Schoonmaker salvaged one of Martin Scorsese's student films during an NYU summer course in 1963 and has edited every major film he has made since, through the years winning a record-tying three Oscars. "Very early on, a certain kind of trust developed between us, which really is the basis of our relationship," says Schoonmaker. "I think he knows that I will do everything I can to carry out his vision on every film I work on with him, and I will work till I drop to do it."

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter’s 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

How important is the film editor to the director? Dana Glauberman, a former assistant to Ivan Reitman's film editor, has edited all five features directed by Reitman's son, Jason Reitman, two of which -- Juno and Up in the Air -- received best picture Oscar nominations. Jason describes Glauberman as "one of the key reasons why I have a career today." He explains: "As a director, you spend many months with hundreds of people, balancing everyone's ideas and dealing with constant input, and then literally overnight you're in a small box -- a jail cell -- with one person, and the two of you have to carry the film across the finish line. And it often does feel like a marriage. 'Who do I want to spend all that time with?' " He adds: "You spend more months editing than you do shooting, and you do it sitting a few feet from each other. There are very few people on earth that you want to share that sort of proximity and time with, so you better have good chemistry. I'll probably end up spending more time with Dana, all added up, than any other human being I'll ever meet. So she's my work partner, and the movies we make are our children."

Glauberman agrees: "All of the aspects of a marriage -- trust, respect and everything that comes along with it -- are in our relationship. We call each other 'work husband' and 'work wife.' Occasionally we don't agree with each other's viewpoints, but we make it work, and it's a true collaboration."

Today female film editors account for about 20 percent of all members of the Motion Picture Editors Guild and can look to Glauberman and Schoonmaker as inspiration for what is possible in the profession. But for much of Hollywood history, film "cutter" was the only position available to women beyond acting and for a few, screenwriting. Cutters were used only to maintain continuity by running film reels with hand cranks and manually cutting and gluing together film strips. They almost never received screen credit.

GUEST COLUMN: Geena Davis' Two Easy Steps to Make Hollywood Less Sexist

A job that was considered merely manual or technical was shown to be an art form by four early standouts: Booth, Anne Bauchens, Dorothy Spencer and Barbara McLean. Their careers spanned decades, from the end of the silent era through the fall of the studio system. Bauchens began as a stenographer for Cecil B. DeMille's brother and ended up editing every one of the director's films, from 1918 including his last, The Ten Commandments (1956), becoming the first female film editor to win an Oscar in 1941. Spencer cut for the likes of Elia Kazan, John Ford and Alfred Hitchcock from 1926 through 1979. By the late 1960s and early 1970s, following Lawrence of Arabia -- which was edited by Anne V. Coates, who came up with its iconic "match cut" from flame to desert sun and continued to work into the 21st century -- a generation influenced by European cinema began to experiment beyond the classic Hollywood film editing style.

They included Allen, Schoonmaker and Verna Fields. Portrayed violence proved to be a powerful inspiration for innovation, from Allen's rapid cutting in Bonnie and Clyde to Fields' making a fake shark seem petrifying in Steven Spielberg's Jaws and Schoonmaker bringing to life the balletic brutality of Scorsese's early films. Fields cut the breakout films of George Lucas (American Graffiti), Peter Bogdanovich (Paper Moon) and Spielberg -- who nicknamed her "Mother Cutter" because of her maternal personality in the editing room. After Jaws' blockbuster success, for which Fields received her own Oscar, she became one of the first high-ranking female studio executives, vp feature production at Universal.

That generation, in turn, mentored and inspired Hollywood's current class of film editors, including Alisa Lepselter, who once worked as Schoonmaker's assistant and has edited all of Woody Allen's films since 1999, and Mary Jo Markey and Maryann Brandon, who, separately or together, have edited all of J.J. Abrams' feature films since 2006 and will reteam for the next Star Wars film.

STORY: Oprah Winfrey on Forgoing Motherhood, Being 'Counted Out' and the Meeting That Turned OWN Around

And as for why so many male directors have chosen to work with female film editors throughout history and today, veteran Schoonmaker explains: "Filmmaking is a collaboration. People have to learn how to deal with their own egos and work as partners. And I think women are probably better at that than men."

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Jason Priestley's Directorial Debut Wins Audience Award at Whistler

"Cas & Dylan" emerges as a breakout hit at the West Coast festival after co-lead Tatiana Maslany earned a best actor trophy in the Borsos competition.

TORONTO – Jason Priestley's directorial debut, Cas & Dylan, won the audience award at the Whistler Film Festival.

Pacific Northwest Pictures plans a Canadian release for the Richard Dreyfuss and Tatiana Maslany-starring road trip comedy about a 61-year-old dying man who plans to end his life on his own terms.

That quest takes a detour when the man ends up on the lam with an eccentric 22-year-old woman.

The festival's juried Borsos competition earlier gave Maslany the best actor trophy for her star turn in Cas & Dylan, from indie producer Montefiore Films.

STORY: Tatiana Maslany Repeats as Best Actor at Whistler Film Festival 

Whistler's breakout hit marks Priestley's directorial debut for a narrative feature after he helmed episodes of TV shows including Call Me Fitz, Haven and 90210 and a 1999 theatrical documentary about the Canadian rock band Barenaked Ladies.

Jessie Gabe (Being Erica) penned the script for Cas & Dylan, which was supported in development by Telefilm Canada.

Priestley, Gabe and Maslany are represented in Canada by the Characters Talent Agency.

Priestley is repped stateside by APA and Thruline Entertainment, with WME and Magnolia Entertainment handling Maslany.

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Geena Davis' Two Easy Steps to Make Hollywood Less Sexist (Guest Column)

The actress and founder of her namesake Institute on Gender in Media cites data showing that there are three male characters for every speaking female in family-rated films: "We are in effect enculturating kids from the very beginning to see women and girls as not taking up half of the space."

This story first appeared in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue.

I never intended to become a data head. I could never have predicted it would play such an important role in my life. Yet here we are: My Institute on Gender in

Media has sponsored the largest amount of research ever done on gender depictions in media, covering a 20-year-plus span.

I’ll give you the basics as to how I got here, then we’ll get to the fun part. Because I was fortunate enough to be cast in movies like Thelma & Louise and A League of Their Own, I developed a heightened awareness of how women are portrayed in media. Enough that when I started watching G-rated videos with my daughter about eight years ago, my “Spidey” sense caused me to immediately notice how few female characters there were in entertainments aimed at the youngest of children. Surely in the 21st century kids should be seeing boys and girls share the sandbox equally?

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter’s 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

Now, let me just say, I take everything too far. (You should see my kids’ birthday cakes.) But having comprehensive data on how female characters are depicted

in Hollywood has proved to be extremely valuable. Obviously, because I’m a colleague, I can go directly to content creators and decision makers and share what we found. (The research was conducted by Dr. Stacy Smith at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.)

The basics are that for every one female-speaking character in family-rated films (G, PG and PG-13), there are roughly three male characters; that crowd and group scenes in these films — live-action and animated — contain only 17 percent female characters; and that the ratio of male-female characters has been exactly the same since 1946. Throw in the hypersexualization of many of the female characters that are there, even in G-rated movies, and their lack of occupations and aspirations and you get the picture.

STORY: Oprah Winfrey on Forgoing Motherhood, Being 'Counted Out' and the Meeting That Turned OWN Around

It wasn’t the lack of female lead characters that first struck me about family films. We all know that’s been the case for ages, and we love when movies like The Hunger Games: Catching Fire and Frozen hit it big. It was the dearth of female characters in the worlds of the stories — the fact that the fictitious villages and jungles and kingdoms and interplanetary civilizations were nearly bereft of female population — that hit me over the head. This being the case, we are in effect enculturating kids from the very beginning to see women and girls as not taking up half of the space. Couldn’t it be that the percentage of women in leadership positions in many areas of society — Congress, law partners, Fortune 500 board members, military officers, tenured professors and many more — stall out at around 17 percent because that’s the ratio we’ve come to see as the norm?

OK, now for the fun part: It’s easy, fast and fun to add female characters, in two simple steps. And I want to be clear I’m not talking about creating more movies with a female lead. If you do, God bless and thank you. Please consider me for that role.

EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS: Hollywood’s Most Powerful Women Pose With Their Mentors

Step 1: Go through the projects you’re already working on and change a bunch of the characters’ first names to women’s names. With one stroke you’ve created some colorful unstereotypical female characters that might turn out to be even more interesting now that they’ve had a gender switch. What if the plumber or pilot or construction foreman is a woman? What if the taxi driver or the scheming politician is a woman? What if both police officers that arrive on the scene are women — and it’s not a big deal?

Step 2: When describing a crowd scene, write in the script, “A crowdgathers, which is half female.” That mayseem weird, but I promise you, somehow or other on the set that day the crowd will turn out to be 17 percent female otherwise. Maybe first ADs think women don’t gather, I don’t know.

And there you have it. You have just quickly and easily boosted the female presence in your project without changing a line of dialogue.

Yes, we can and will work to tell more women’s stories, listen to more women’s voices and write richer female characters and to fix the 5-to-1 ratio of men/women behind the camera. But consider this: In all of the sectors of society that still have a huge gender disparity, how long will it take to correct that? You can’t snap your fingers and suddenly half of Congress is women. But there’s one category where the underrepresentation of women can be fixed tomorrow: onscreen. In the time it takes to make a movie or create a television show, we can change what the future looks like.

STORY: The Hollywood Reporter’s Mentorship Program Turns 5

There are woefully few women CEOs in the world, but there can be lots of them in films. We haven’t had a woman president yet, but we have on TV. (Full disclosure: One of them was me.) How can we fix the problem of corporate boards being so unequal without quotas? Well, they can be half women instantly, onscreen. How do we encourage a lot more girls to pursue science, technology and engineering careers? By casting droves of women in STEM jobs today in movies and on TV. Hey, it would take me many years to become a real nuclear physicist, but I can play one tomorrow. (Again, in your next movie.)

Here’s what I always say: If they can see it, they can be it.

You can find more information at seejane.org.

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A Day in The Life of Hollywood's Most Powerful Women

Six top women in show business give THR a peek at their packed weekly schedules, from mogul meetings to battles with toddlers over bunny slippers.

This story first appeared in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue.

Because you are one, you might assume that you already know what it's like to be a female entertainment executive, reading bedtime stories to kids each night before rising bright and early to run the starmaker machinery behind the stories Hollywood brings to the world. But how does everybody else do it?

THR got a hold of the actual personal appointment books of Discovery Communications Group president Eileen O'Neill, Relativity president of production Robbie Brenner, E! Entertainment president Suzanne Kolb, BET chairman and CEO Debra Lee, WME partner Nancy Josephson and Bravo/Oxygen Media president Frances Berwick. They all kindly opened up their iPhone calendars and Outlook datebooks, confirming the exhausting but exhilarating experience of their everyday lives. They may hop a cross-country jet, bond with the first lady, sell a series, guide an Oscar winner, pour a bath and save the world's drinking water in their spare time: It's all in a day's work.

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter’s 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

MONDAY, NOV. 18

5:30 AM

Relativity president of production ROBBIE BRENNER rises in Los Angeles and checks tracking on next month's big Hollywood movies, followed by early morning reading of the latest draft of Wentworth Miller's novel Scare Me ("I get my best reading done in the quiet hours of the morning," she says) and getting her girls Isabella, 8, and India, 4, ready for school.

7 AM

After jogging and walking the dog, EILEEN O'NEILL, Discovery Communications Group president, watches cuts of Discovery and TLC shows at her Silver Spring, Md., home before greenlight meetings. "On the mornings before, I'm usually cramming," she says. Meanwhile, BRENNER hikes Fryman Canyon twice a week: "I do this a lot. It's where I can clear my head." On Friday of this week, she would return with her golden retriever, Marley.

8 AM

President of E! Entertainment SUZANNE KOLB drops off Katie, 3, at preschool: "We play our 'spot the animals on the billboards' game as we drive down Sunset."

9:30 AM

BRENNER spearheads a casting meeting for The Most Wonderful Time, starring Diane Keaton, to be directed by Stepmom screenwriter Jessie Nelson.

11 AM

After catching up with NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group chair Bonnie Hammer, KOLB has her monthly breakfast with 10 E! employees, "who get to ask me anything they have on their minds." Then she jumps in her car and rolls into the driveway at the Kardashians' Hidden Hills home at 11 on the dot. "We discussed a Christmas special idea that could include home movies of past family celebrations and a reveal of their highly anticipated Christmas card," she says.

1 PM

WME partner NANCY JOSEPHSON has a Polo Lounge power lunch "with an Oscar-winning movie star thinking about her first TV series," she says. "An Oscar winner she'd been in a movie with stopped by the table. Stars love the Polo Lounge -- no paparrazi, just a pianist playing Cole Porter."

4 PM

O'NEILL runs a Shark Week meeting to come up with an idea for Craig Piligian, CEO of Pilgrim Films, to top the mega-success of Megaladon. "Megalodon was the highest-rated show in Shark Week history," she says.

6 PM

BET chairman and CEO DEBRA LEE attends a live 106 and Park taping of Michelle Obama's appearance and tweets about it to her 21,036 followers. She also meets with Obama personally: "She wanted to connect directly with young people about the importance of a good education, so she chose 106 and Park."

STORY: Oprah Winfrey on Forgoing Motherhood, Being 'Counted Out' and the Meeting That Turned OWN Around

TUESDAY, NOV. 19

9 AM

BRENNER takes her daughter on a school field trip to Storybook Theatre in North Hollywood to see Goldilocks and the Three Bears before hitting the office. There, she prepares for her 2:30 meeting with Casey Affleck, Relativity president Tucker Tooley, Expendables producer Basil Iwanyk and The Way Way Back producer Kevin Walsh, to discuss an untitled Josh Hamilton project. O'NEILL boards a flight to L.A. and catches up on emails.

12:30 PM

KOLB lunches with NBCU Cable Entertainment president and chief content officer Jeff Wachtel and executive vp program development Jeff Olde. "We congratulated Jeff Olde on Total Divas' success," she says. Then she meets with the cast of E!'s upcoming series Rich Kids of Beverly Hills.

1:30 PM

"Meeting with David Hasselhoff was the most fun I've had this week," says O'NEILL. "The energy was amazing -- it was incredible to hear his stories and great to hear how much he loved singing on Shark After Dark last year."

4:30 PM

BRENNER, with Out of the Furnace director Scott Cooper and castmembers Affleck, Christian Bale and Zoe Saldana, attends the film's screening and reception for media and tastemakers hosted by Relativity CEO Ryan Kavanaugh and producers Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Killoran at Soho House.

5 PM

O'NEILL conducts a creative meeting for Mythbusters with co-hosts Adam Savage (in person) and Jamie Hyneman (on Skype). The kickoff episode for January is Star Wars-themed, "which is near and dear to both their hearts coming from the special effects world," she says. "We were talking about adding a live component to it."

7:30 PM

BRENNER has her quarterly meeting for Thirst Project with founder Seth Maxwell at her Beverly Hills office: "I am so passionate about this organization, which is dedicated to raising awareness and creating a sustainable solution to the clean water crisis."

9 PM

After rolling calls on the drive home from her Mid-Wilshire offices to her Coldwater Canyon house, KOLB has dinner, then it's bath, playtime and bedtime for Katie. Mom helps draft a college scholarship application: "I have the privilege of mentoring a brilliant and beautiful high school senior [thanks to THR's mentorship program]," she says.

PHOTOS: The Resurgence of Oprah Winfrey

WEDNESDAY, NOV. 20

7 AM

"This is when I negotiate a school-appropriate outfit with my toddler," says KOLB. "Bunny slippers are not for school."

8:30 AM

FRANCES BERWICK, president of Bravo and Oxygen Media, has breakfast with NBCUniversal executive vp business development Cesar Conde, recently hired away from his post as Univision Networks president, at Rock Center Cafe.

9:30 AM

O'NEILL has a breakfast meeting with Craig Ferguson about Shark After Dark: "His company did our live show every night of Shark Week. We had been talking about doing a similar show for our Naked and Afraid series," the reality show which puts two unclothed survivalists in the wilderness for 21 days. "We were sealing the deal, if you will."

10 AM

BRENNER meets with Cliff Dorfman, writer of Relativity's The Crow reboot, about upcoming projects. "We recently signed an overall deal with Cliff after his wonderful work on The Crow," she says. "I'm excited to be working with him in the long term."

11 AM

Says KOLB after her meeting with E! News co-anchor Giuliana Rancic: "Too bad that adorable baby Duke isn't old enough for his own show."

12 PM

BERWICK has a five-hour development meeting about winter programming with Oxygen development head Cori Abraham. O'NEILL conducts a pitch meeting with a talent who sees angels. "The meeting almost went off the rails with her trying to give me messages from the dearly departed," she says. "I have an Irish uptight force field around me. I said, 'Yeah, let's not do this.' " At 4:30, she Skypes the real angel in her life, son Quinn.

3 PM

JOSEPHSON and a colleague do ancient civilizations homework with a mentee from WME partner school Whaley Middle School in her office. "We need to brush up on our seventh grade math," she says.

5 PM

A car will be picking up KOLB at 7:30 for a red-eye to New York, so she ducks out of a talent meeting early to spend an hour of dinner and playtime with her daughter.

7:30 PM

O'NEILL takes a producer to a Clippers vs. Oklahoma City Thunder game at Staples Center: "Home team won."

8 PM

After bedtime stories with Katie, KOLB watches Chelsea Lately, E! News and the latest rough cuts of E! shows like Total Divas.

STORY: The Hollywood Reporter’s Mentorship Program Turns 5

THURSDAY, NOV. 21

7 AM

O'NEILL discusses a natural history show with international offices and preps for a production meeting, a job candidate interview and a meeting with comedian Bob Oschack, aka Bob the Shark.

9 AM

KOLB starts her New York day by grabbing a bite with NBCU president of sales Linda Yaccarino at The London, then walks over to her guest office at 30 Rockefeller Center: "I oddly hear the [30 Rock] theme song in my head every time I walk in."

10:30 AM

After viewing a market-research screening of thriller Earth to Echo, BRENNER recaps with Kevin Goetz at Screen Engine, who drives the studio's marketing research, along with Relativity division execs and filmmakers Dave Green and Andrew Panay.

1 PM

JOSEPHSON attends a luncheon at The Bazaar with Sarah Adolphson, head of WME Foundation, to talk about LA Kitchen, an organization supported by client and celebrity chef Jose Andres. "Robert Eggers' DC Kitchen gives work to ex-cons and youth aging out of foster care, and repurposes tons of food," says Josephson. "And now there's going to be one here -- it's so great!" Meanwhile, BRENNER lunches with Cathy Schulman, friend and Women in Film president, at Cecconi's, where they chat about being Hollywood working moms.

2:30 PM

BERWICK attends the "Hammer Direct Reports" meeting presided over by Bonnie Hammer.

7:30 PM

BRENNER attends Dallas Buyers Club's AMPAS screening at Hollywood's Linwood Dunn Theater, which includes a Q-and-A with Matthew McConaughey, Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner, co-writers Craig Borten and Melisa Wallack and producer Rachel Winter.

10:30 PM

O'NEILL hops in a car to LAX. On the jet, she screens Bakery Boss, Escaping the Prophet and other TLC shows. "At 11 p.m., I collapsed in a heap at home in Silver Spring."

STORY: Women in Entertainment Mentorship Grad: ‘It’s the Best Thing That’s Ever Happened to Me’

FRIDAY, NOV. 22

3 AM

O'NEILL is awakened by her beagle "going nuts because there was a fire truck in the neighborhood," she says. "I gave up getting back to sleep, may still be on West Coast time."

10 AM

BRENNER's 30-minute meeting with Sissy Spacek turns into 90, as they discuss Badlands and Coal Miner's Daughter. "I'm in awe of her beauty, grace and intelligence, and I found myself mesmerized by her."

10:30 AM

WME's JOSEPHSON meets with a New York-based actress-writer who flew in to L.A. to pitch a show. "We pitched to Showtime at 10:30 and HBO at 1, and HBO bought it," she says. "A good way to go into the weekend. It's about putting clients together."

11:30 AM

O'NEILL holds a live events meeting discussing where Nik Wallenda, of Grand Canyon tightrope-walk fame, will walk next: city or scenic wonder? "We had a robust debate."

1 PM

BRENNER holds a Best of Me casting call with DiNovi Pictures and Relativity. "This is our third time working with Nicholas Sparks." Later, she goes over the hill to pick up her daughters from school.

6 PM

BRENNER ventures to the grocery store to "see what inspires me for dinner. My girls and I love to cook together." Tomorrow, she will take her daughters horseback riding at the Burbank Equestrian Center before working a Dallas Buyers Club press lunch and screening reception at CAA hosted by Reese Witherspoon and Gone Girl producer Bruna Papandrea. Later in the weekend, she will attend an Out of the Furnace dinner with Bale, Affleck, Saldana, Cooper, producer Colleen Camp and guest Michael Mann at the Chateau Marmont.

7:30 PM

JOSEPHSON has dinner with friends and fellow parents while "our kids are at a dance party."

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Sesame Street Spoofs 'Lord of the Rings' Franchise (Video)

Cookie Monster stars in "Lord of the Crumbs," a quest of self-control and memory to bake cookies -- or, as Monster Gobble calls them, "Me precious!"

Just ahead of the theatrical release of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, Sesame Street's latest upload spoofs the Lord of the Rings franchise. Cookie Monster plays the role of the Frodo Baggins-like lead, Monster Gobble, who is on a quest to bake cookies -- or, as he calls them, "Me precious!"

PHOTOS: 'The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug' Premiere Draws Peter Jackson, Orlando Bloom

The five-minute video opens with the legacy of cookies, with Gobble reading a recipe just before the map flies away. With puppets standing in for Gandalf and Arwen (played by Liv Tyler on the big screen), Gobble must practice self-control and delayed gratification in order to assemble all the ingredients correctly and bake a batch of cookies in the fires of Mount Crumb: "It's the oven over there," says the Arwen stand-in.

Gobble also must use basic mathematics and rhyming strategies to help remember important things ("How many chippies should you pour? Grab one cup and add one more.") but occasionally gets distracted when a Gollum-like twin tries to convince Gobble to simply eat the ingredients raw to pacify his cravings.

The short is packed with fun nods to the Lord of the Rings films -- Gandalf theatrically tells Gobble "You shall not pass!" because the recipe isn't complete -- as well as the same witty humor that pokes fun at the parody itself. Gobble's best lines are "Wow, that good special effect!" and "Boy, you dramatic!"

"Lord of the Crumbs" is the latest addition to the show's "Cookie Crumby Pictures" online library of spoofs, alongside parodies of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, True Blood, Homeland, The Voice and Icona Pop's "I Love It." The most popular spoof is a cookie-centric take on Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" with more than 15 million views.

PHOTOS: Elijah Wood in 'Hobbit' and 16 Other Cameos in Prequels, Reboots and Remakes

Watch the delicious parody here:

The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hits theaters Dec. 13.

What do you think of Sesame Street's latest parody? Sound off in the comments below.

Twitter: @cashleelee

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Sepideh - Reaching for the Stars: IDFA Review

Berit Madsen's Danish documentary, selected for competition at both IDFA and Sundance, chronicles the dreams and frustrations of a teenage Iranian girl.

Planet Earth's luminaries can outdazzle anything in the heavens, as illustrated by Berit Madsen's strenuously uplifting documentary Sepideh - Reaching for the Stars (also known simply as Sepideh). While enlivened by the determination and charisma of its eponymous heroine, an Iranian teenage astronomer with astronautical aspirations, this paean to boundary-pushing independence never itself threatens to break new ground.

Launching at IDFA, the Danish production by debutant Berit Madsen has secured a North American bow in Sundance's World Cinema Documentary Competition, and can doubtless expect further festival and small-screen bookings. Events and sidebars specializing in human-rights matters and young people's issues will provide primary exposure before this quiet crowdpleaser finds its long-term role in educational contexts.

Astronomy has long held an exalted position within Islam, a religion whose symbol features a crescent moon and a star. Membership of an Astronomy Club thus grants unmarried females an unusual degree of latitude, with opportunities for the sexes to meet after dark and observe the heavens. Sepideh Hooshyar from the Fars province, whose transition from 16 to 18 is telescoped into the film's 80-odd minutes, is a particularly avid adherent of this unique constellation of physics, math, geography and anthropology.

Her role-model is Iranian-American Anousheh Ansari, the first female space-tourist: "I want this to be an inspiring story," Ansari is heard remarking, "I believe that if you want something badly enough, it will happen." The documentary draws a discreet veil over the fact that Ansari ponied up to go into space, emphasizing instead how Sepideh is fired up by her countrywoman's example. A passing reference to Ansari as "the first woman in space," meanwhile, will come as news to 1960s cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova.

Driven by an desire to honor her late father, and a frequent letter-writer to Albert Einstein, Sepideh sticks to her ambitions in the face of maternal bemusement ("learn how to cook!") and outright opposition from her unapologetically traditionalist uncle. The latter hissably epitomizes an entire national system of patriarchal restriction and repression which the film takes for granted and never attempts to explain or explore, instead concentrating on Sepideh reacts to such limitations.

As is so often the case in documentaries about spirited young religious women, it isn't too long before the specter of marriage appears, casting a potential shadow over Sepideh's unapologetic drive for self-realization ("I'm a free person!"). Matrimony, however, doesn't necessarily preclude academic and professional progress. And Sepideh's thirtyish suitor is much less of a presence than her astronomy tutor Kabiri, a progressive-minded counterbalance to her uncle's bull-headed naysaying.

Iran has a notably youthful demographic spread just now , and Sepideh provides plenty of grounds for optimism as regards the turbulent country's future. Madsen's fundamentally dead-serious concern with female empowerment and education is leavened by welcome moments of dry humor - Agora meets Persepolis, perhaps. In what's generally a functional, even formulaic picture in terms of visuals and overall tone, near-relentlessly over-scored in accordance to current documentary conventions, nocturnal cinematography by Babak Tafreshi and Oshin D Zakarian provides suitably celestial, Malickian grace-notes.

Venue: International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (Feature-Length Competition), 24 November 2013
Production company: Radiator Film
Director / Screenwriter: Berit Madsen
Producers: Stefan Frost, Henrik Underbjerg
Director of photography: Mohammad Reza Jahan Panah
Editor: Peter Winther
Music: Niklas Schak, Tin Soheili
Sales: Danish Film Institute, Copenhagen
No MPAA rating, 88 minutes

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'Edge of Tomorrow' Trailer: Tom Cruise Faces Off Against Aliens (Video)

The Warner Bros. title has set a release date of June 6, 2014.

The first trailer for the Tom Cruise and Emily Blunt sci-fi actioner Edge of Tomorrow has arrived.

Fiery explosions, ominous alien invasion imagery, a sparse score and action figure-style equipment are all present in the clip, which establishes the story of Cruise as a soldier who dies in a fight with aliens.

The twist? He "now finds himself inexplicably thrown into a time loop -- forcing him to live out the same brutal combat over and over, fighting and dying again … and again," reads the synopsis.

The Warner Bros. title, directed by Doug Liman, has set a release date of June 6, 2014. The studio has teased the title with the tagline "Live.Die.Repeat."

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'Bull Durham' Musical to Premiere in Atlanta

Ron Shelton has adapted his Oscar-nominated screenplay for the 1988 baseball movie that starred Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins.

NEW YORK -- A musical based on the film that Sports Illustrated once proclaimed the "No. 1 Greatest Sports Movie of All-Time," Bull Durham, will premiere in September 2014 at the Alliance Theatre in Atlanta.

Ron Shelton, who directed the 1988 hit, has written the book for the musical, adapted from his Oscar-nominated screenplay. Music and lyrics are by singer-songwriter Susan Werner, whose recordings have ranged across folk, jazz, gospel, country and roots rock.

Loosely based on Shelton's time on and off the field in Minor League baseball, the comedy-drama follows veteran catcher "Crash" Davis' experiences after being enlisted to prepare the North Carolina Durham Bulls undisciplined rookie pitcher, Ebby Calvin "Nuke" LaLoosh, for the season. A complicated romantic triangle develops when team groupie Annie Savoy's interventions get in the way.

The movie starred Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins. Produced by Orion Pictures on a modest $9 million budget, the film was a critical hit that grossed a healthy $50.8 million in domestic release.

Kip Fagan, known for his Off Broadway stagings of Jesse Eisenberg's plays Asuncion and The Revisionist, will direct the Bull Durham musical, with Joshua Bergasse (NBC's Smash) handling choreography. Casting and production schedule will be announced at a later date.

While the show is not officially being billed as a Broadway tryout, commercial producers will no doubt be heading to Georgia to assess its potential. The Alliance Theatre has a solid track record as a testing ground for Broadway and touring productions, having provided pre-New York exposure for Disney's Aida, The Color Purple, Bring It On and Sister Act, among others.

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Paul Walker's Death: Second Porsche 'Thief' Booked

A 25-year-old and an 18-year-old have both been charged with felony grand theft of personal property and two misdemeanors and face up to four-and-a-half years in jail if convicted.

A second man charged with stealing a piece of the car in which Fast & Furious actor Paul Walker died has surrendered.

Authorities say 25-year-old Anthony Janow surrendered Tuesday at the San Fernando courthouse. He was booked and released on $60,000 bail.

PHOTOS: Paul Walker's Career in Pictures

His attorney's name wasn't released.

Walker and driver Roger Rodas died Nov. 30 when their Porsche crashed in the Los Angeles suburb of Santa Clarita.

Prosecutors say Janow and 18-year-old Jameson Witty stole a roof panel as the wreckage was being towed.

PHOTOS: Actors Who Died During Filming

They were charged Monday with felony grand theft of personal property and two misdemeanors. They face up to 4 1/2 years in jail if convicted.
Witty also is free on bail.

The coroner on Monday released Walker's body to a Hollywood mortuary.

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Women in Entertainment Mentorship Grad: 'It's the Best Thing That's Ever Happened to Me'

In a heartfelt essay, one young woman reflects on her life-altering relationship with a Hollywood mentor, a woman she calls her "guardian angel."

This story first appeared in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue.

Even among the many extraordinary girls who have taken part in THR's Women in Entertainment mentorship program, Aisha stood out from the beginning. Living with her brother and single mother (an emigrant from the Caribbean), the 17-year-old high-school senior has shuttled between her mother's house and her sister's apartment in Inglewood, Calif., since she was a freshman so that she can pursue her studies at City Honors High School. With stellar grades and skyrocketing ambitions, she now is waiting to hear if she has been accepted at Northwestern University or UC Berkeley. In January, she began visiting her mentor, E! Entertainment president Suzanne Kolb. "From the moment I met Aisha, I knew she was incredibly special," says Kolb. "I have learned as much from her as she could ever have learned from me. She's a shining example of intelligence, character and heart. I look forward to cheering her on as she achieves all of her dreams and seeing her become a mentor to other women in the future."

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter’s 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

Read Aisha's essay below.

I cannot count the amount of times I have heard elders and even peers refer to someone as their "guardian angel" or "saving grace." Despite this, I never gave much thought to the fact that a single person or event could forever change the course of my life. I've always known that knowledge is the key to success, but as a result of the Women in Entertainment Mentoring Program, I now understand that sometimes this vital knowledge cannot be learned from a book, but instead is delivered in a physical, more tangible form. In my case, it was delivered by an angel who answers to the name of Suzanne Kolb.

The WIE Mentoring Program is honestly the best thing that has ever happened to me. In December 2012, I was chosen along with 12 other girls from the Greater Los Angeles Area following an application process that included an essay and an interview that weeded out about 150 other applicants. Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles in collaboration with The Hollywood Reporter cultivated WIE to expose girls to a professional world that they were oblivious to prior to their participation in the program. Every year, 13 women in Hollywood volunteer as mentors for a year to inner-city girls who are in need of role models. Many girls who were selected for the program, including myself, never really contemplated that women hold a significant amount of power in the world. This sad truth can partly be attributed to the fact that I attend school in an area where only 13 percent of the population has a college degree, and close to 40 percent are teen parents. In an environment as toxic as this, it is sometimes difficult to fathom that success is even possible.

STORY: The Hollywood Reporter’s Mentorship Program Turns 5

I remember my first visit with Suzanne like it was yesterday. I was expecting a school bus to pick me up, not a shiny, black Lincoln town car driven by a man who looked like he belonged in a Matrix movie. I was almost certain I was no longer living in reality when I stepped foot in Suzanne's office. Am I in the right room? I thought. Maybe she thinks I am someone else. "Hi Aisha," she said. Is she excited to see me? I doubt it -- maybe she just had a really good lunch. As Suzanne and I began to talk, I realized she actually was excited to spend time with me. I couldn't see what was so special about me, but in the past year she has helped me see it a little more every day.

Through my experiences in WIE, I realized that the "lofty" dreams and aspirations I had were not nearly high enough. Suzanne has inspired me to reach for stars that I never even knew existed. She has demonstrated through her words, actions and decisions that it is possible for me to be successful and extremely powerful while maintaining my self-worth, morals and modesty.

My mentor has changed my definition of "beauty." I know now that true beauty emanates from one's every pore. It entwines itself into one's words, and exposes itself through one's actions. It is so much more than physical appearance; it is one's essence. My guardian angel came down from heaven less than one year ago and blessed me with an unfathomable beauty. Thanks to this program, I am aware that my potential provides me with a limitless future, and I am determined to take advantage of every opportunity in order to ensure that success is not just an option, but that it is my only option.

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The Hollywood Reporter's Mentorship Program Turns 5

This issue marks the anniversary of THR with Big Brothers Big Sisters, where teenagers get to learn and grow with the help of some of the industry's most powerful women.

This story first appeared in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue.

The stories are sometimes heart-breaking, sometimes funny, always touching. One girl describes how her parents separated and then: "My mother took all of us, and we just started moving from place to place. One week we'd be crammed up in a motel, the next week we'd be sleeping in someone's living room. This went on for three years. The struggle was very real."

Another writes of battling debilitating illness and so badly wanting to make her mother proud: "My mother has been both a mother and father to me. She is my motivation. I strive to be the best I can be at everything. I don't give up because I want to create a better life for the both of us."

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter’s 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

A third recalls dealing with a parent's death. "It's what pushes me," she says. "One should never settle for less than the best."

These are just three of the 150 girls from inner-city schools who applied for 15 places in the Women in Entertainment Mentorship Program (another two mentees come from New York), a unique endeavor that is about to enter its fifth year and that was created jointly by The Hollywood Reporter and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles.

Each year, THR and BBBS pair up 15 to 17 exceptional high school juniors with some of the most powerful women in entertainment. One day every two weeks, for a year, the girls are brought to their mentors' offices, where they're taught about the professional world and given guidance for life.

"Every time I visit her, I have a smile on my face," one girl writes about her mentor, Cyndi McClellan, E! Entertainment's president of network strategy and E! News. "She is supportive, caring, intelligent and a great mom. When I'm with her, I feel safe."

Another describes how nervous she felt upon first meeting her mentor, Bela Bajaria, executive vp at Universal TV. "It seemed surreal that a girl like me would soon be mentored by such an innovative and prosperous woman. I hope I can be successful in this industry so I can give back and mentor a girl like myself." Says a third of her mentor, Hilary Estey McLoughlin, president of creative affairs at CBS TV Distribution, "Mrs. Hilary is my hero."

STORY: Women in Entertainment Mentorship Grad: ‘It’s the Best Thing That’s Ever Happened to Me’

Mentors like these have helped their mentees reach a new level -- and others are coming onboard to take them even further. In 2012, Lisa Paulsen of Entertainment Industry Foundation and Abbe Raven, Danielle Carrig and Michael Feeney of Lifetime announced that they were creating a scholarship fund of $200,000 to help the girls go to college. (Mentorship graduates have attended such schools as UCLA, UC Berkeley and Occidental College.) And this year, one of the girls also will have her life transformed thanks to the generosity of L.A.'s Loyola Marymount University, which is giving one of the mentees a full-ride scholarship, covering all her tuition and living expenses, worth more than $200,000.

"It was incredibly inspiring to meet the mentees who visited the LMU campus in September," says Stephen G. Ujlaki, dean of LMU's School of Film and Television. "I was struck by how articulate and motivated they were. We are so proud to offer these young women four-year, full-ride scholarships that will enable them to pursue these dreams."

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Hollywood's Most Powerful Women Pose With Their Mentors (Exclusive Photos)

Behind every powerful woman is sometimes another woman, a male executive or Oscar-winning director, as exemplified by Emma Watts and Oliver Stone; Nancy Dubuc and Abbe Raven; Sandra Stern and Jon Feltheimer; Cyma Zarghami and Philippe Dauman; and Megan Colligan and Nancy Utley.

This story first appeared in The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Power 100 issue.

SINCE 1992

Emma Watts & Mentor Oliver Stone

Photographed by David Needleman on Nov. 26 at Fox Studios in Los Angeles

Reuniting with her former boss on a recent fall day, Watts, 43, recalls the advice Stone, 67, gave her 16 years ago when she left his company for a production job at 20th Century Fox: "If you're going to work for a studio, promise to do it on your terms and don't lose yourself in the process." The maverick filmmaker laughs. "What other piece of advice did I give you?" Watts quickly answers: "Never take no for an answer. And always be suspicious of yes." Stone taught his protege well: Watts steadily rose through the ranks to become president of production at Fox, a job generally dominated by men, and, like Stone, she is more on the serious side. "I liked her East Coast attitude and discipline. She had a very strong interest in storytelling and a great connection to people. And she was a devoted swimmer," he says. Watts grew up in Vancouver after emigrating from England and attended UCLA before going to work for photographer Herb Ritts then Stone, whom she assisted on movies including 1995's Nixon and 1999's Any Given Sunday. (Through Stone, she also met her husband, Jonathan Krauss, who worked for the helmer before striking out on his own as a producer.) "Nobody works harder than Oliver," says Watts. "He doesn't just want to make movies for the marketplace but for the ages." -- PAMELA McCLINTOCK

LIST: The Hollywood Reporter's 2013 Women in Entertainment Power 100

SINCE 1998

From left: Mentor Abbe Raven & Nancy Dubuc

Photographed by Miller Mobley on Dec. 2 in Raven's office at A+E Networks in New York City

When Raven interviewed Dubuc, then 29, for what would become the latter's first job at A+E Networks, director of historical programming at The History Channel, she was struck by her "confidence" -- and her height. "She was very tall!" recalls Raven, who at 5-foot-4 is 7 inches shorter than the statuesque Dubuc. "You also said I was too young," chimes in Dubuc, who can't resist adding, "That is an HR violation, by the way." Raven, 60, affects a tone of mock forgetfulness. "I think she probably wanted my job," she says. "And at that moment, she was too young." Not anymore: In June, the 45-year-old Dubuc, who on Nov. 2 celebrated 15 years at the company, was elevated to president and CEO while Raven moved to the role of chairman. "We clicked right away," says Raven. "I could tell she was a go-getter and a doer, and we needed doers. Nancy's also a big risk-taker, and she has helped me become a bigger risk-taker." Adds Dubuc: "Abbe has helped me not take stupid risks. I'll jump off the cliff without looking, and Abbe will say, 'Maybe you should look down first.' " Opposites in nearly every way -- stature, temperament -- the women have a symbiotic relationship built on trust and loyalty that is unusual in Hollywood's competitive, credit-hogging environment. Raven took Dubuc to the hospital when she was in labor with her first child and Dubuc's husband was stuck in traffic. And the two still talk every day. Says Dubuc, "I think it takes a very selfless, very unique person to allow a transition like this to happen." -- MARISA GUTHRIE

STORY: The Hollywood Reporter's Mentorship Program Turns 5

SINCE 1986

Sandra Stern & Mentor Jon Feltheimer

Photographed by Ramona Rosales on Nov. 22 at Lionsgate in Santa Monica

Stern, whose relationship with Lionsgate CEO Feltheimer, 62, traces back nearly 28 years to when the latter hired her at New World Entertainment, says her first impression was a layered one. "We were introduced by an agent, Alan Berger, who suggested we'd 'get' each other," she says. "I thought he was very smart, talented … and kind of cute." Stern, Lionsgate Television's chief dealmaker behind such critically acclaimed hits as Mad Men, Nurse Jackie and Orange Is the New Black, was hired (again) by Feltheimer in 2003 and, in his words, "doesn't just make deals at Lionsgate -- she helps run a growing and diversified TV business." Also one of the main architects behind the studio's now-legendary 10/90 deal for Anger Management, Stern attributes her finely tuned business sense to "Felt's" leadership -- "He taught me to think for myself … and always look for a win-win" -- and credits him for creating a familial work atmosphere. "His door is always open," she says of her mentor. "There's always time for friendly banter and corny jokes, usually mine." Says Feltheimer, who like Stern is a native of Brooklyn, "I've learned we can yell and laugh with each other at the same time." -- STACEY WILSON

STORY: Women in Entertainment Mentorship Grad: 'It's the Best Thing That's Ever Happened to Me'

SINCE 1993

Mentor Philippe Dauman & Cyma Zarghami

Photographed by Wesley Mann on Nov. 26 at Viacom in New York City

There's nothing like a little adversity to bring two power players closer. Dauman, 59, and Zarghami, 51, have worked together for nearly two decades, but they became especially close when Nickelodeon was in the throes of a precipitous ratings slide in late 2011 and throughout 2012. "We met even more frequently than we normally do in that time period," says Dauman, who joined Viacom in 1993 as general counsel and ascended to CEO in 2006. "I told her, 'This will make you and your organization stronger.' " And it did: Nickelodeon has more than come out of its slump since: The network has posted 10 straight months of ratings growth and bowed several series -- a reboot of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (above) premiered in 2012 -- that have shown long-term franchise potential. "We had a lot of work to do to get ourselves back on track, and the steady hand and leadership of Philippe was one of the most valuable components of our rebound," says its group president, Zarghami, whom Dauman calls "competitive," "strong-minded" and "unafraid to take risks." The two also socialize outside of the office, often having dinner together with their spouses, and Zarghami and her husband attended the September wedding of Dauman's son. She also notes that Dauman "is incredibly calm all the time." So he was not up at night worried about whether his trusted lieutenant would get Viacom's most valuable asset back on track. In fact, says Dauman, "I sleep like a baby." -- M.G.

STORY: Oprah Winfrey on Forgoing Motherhood, Being 'Counted Out' and the Meeting That Turned OWN Around

SINCE 2003

From left: Mentor Nancy Utley & Megan Colligan

Photographed by Rainer Hosch on Nov. 22 at Skybar at Mondrian L.A.

The affection between Utley, 58, and Colligan, 40, started a decade ago at Fox Searchlight, where Utley ran the marketing department and Colligan was vp national publicity. Both women have made major gains since: Utley is president of Searchlight, and Colligan is president of domestic marketing and distribution at Paramount Pictures. "Her energy was incredible," recalls Utley of Colligan. "She was wildly creative. She had this insane idea of rereleasing 28 Days Later with a different ending. We did it and got tremendous press." What Colligan remembers best is that her mentor let those around her flourish. "We had a brainstorm session every Thursday at 4 p.m. that we called the 'flow.' There was no agenda or rigor. We developed great ideas that would become critical to a campaign." Utley also taught her protege it's possible to have children and a career (Colligan followed Utley's lead and had three kids of her own). The duo worked together on a series of hits, including Alexander Payne's Sideways, before Colligan left Searchlight in 2005 for a bigger job as executive vp marketing at Paramount Vantage. Utley learned the hard way that if someone (like Colligan) shines, they should be promoted over others, even if it upsets the order. "It was," says Utley, "an eye-opener." -- P.M.

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'The Family Stone' Director Thomas Bezucha to Remake 'Priceless' for uMedia

The remake of the French-language original, which starred Audrey Tautou, will shoot on location in the French Riviera next summer.

The Family Stone director Thomas Bezucha has signed on to remake French romantic comedy Priceless for Belgium production and financing group uMedia. The English-language remake is set to begin shooting on location in the French Riviera next summer.

The 2006 French original, directed by Pierre Salvadori and starring Audrey Tautou, was a local box-office hit and sold to more than 60 territories worldwide.

The plot of the remake focuses on Alec, a shy, hard-working English waiter at a grand hotel on the Riviera who is mistaken for a millionaire and seduced by Lauren, an American  girl who relies on sugar daddies to finance her extravagant lifestyle. Lauren takes off when she discovers Alec's true identity. Alec, trying to win her back, follows her along the Cote d'Azur, only to end up broke and becoming a kept man himself when an older, wealthy woman takes him on. The tables are turned as Lauren coaches Alec in the rules of a game she knows all too well.

"I'm such a huge fan of Pierre Salvadori's original film I leapt at the chance to bring that story to another audience," said Bezucha in a statement. 

"Priceless is a captivating romantic comedy full of finesse and glamour with a great commercial potential. It fits perfectly with our editorial line and will be a notable addition to the solid filmography we're building," added uMedia CEO Adrian Politowski.

Priceless will be the second high-profile project uMedia has shot along the Riviera. The group is a backer on Olivier Dahan's upcoming biopic Grace of Monaco starring Nicole Kidman.

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EHarmony Launches Service Modeled After 'Walter Mitty' Plotline

A one-on-one matchmaking service didn’t exist when the company saw the script a year and a half ago, but "we didn’t want it to slip by," a VP tells THR -- thus was born eH+.

This story first appeared in the Dec. 20 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine.

Throughout the new Fox Film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Ben Stiller's daydreaming adventurer character takes phone calls from his personal counselor at eHarmony, the online dating site he uses to help him connect with a soul mate. While Internet dating services aren't known for live 24/7 concierges, eHarmony decided that, rather than object to the inaccurate way it is portrayed, the company instead would create a service that mirrored the one in the film.

VIDEO: 'Secret Life of Walter Mitty' Trailer: Ben Stiller's Dreamy Awards Contender

It all started a year and a half ago, when Fox showed the religious-leaning eHarmony the script for Mitty. "They basically said, 'You're in the thick of the plot, and we want you to help us be accurate,' " says eHarmony vp customer experience Grant Langston. "As I read the script, I realized it couldn't be accurate because that's not the way we provide our service. EHarmony is a self-serve model." But the company had in fact considered a premium product wherein a client would receive a "matchmaker" to provide one-on-one counseling. Thus was born eH+.

PHOTOS: 'Ben Stiller Show' Alumni: Where Are They Now?

EHarmony had intended to launch eH+ on Christmas Eve, the day before Mitty opens, but rolled it out instead Dec. 2 with just one matchmaker, a trained therapist. Although eH+ is pricey -- $5,000 a year compared with $60 a month for eHarmony -- Langston predicts it will attract a few hundred customers by the end of 2014. While eHarmony did not pay for product placement in Mitty, it has partnered with Fox on TV ads for both. "If it was a different movie, we'd push hard against it because we're choosy about how our brand is portrayed and we don't have much of a relationship with Hollywood," says Langston. "But I don't know of very many situations where life imitates art in quite this way, so we didn't want it to slip by."

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Leon Panetta Revealed Secret Info to 'Zero Dark Thirty' Screenwriter

Newly declassified documents show that the former CIA director disclosed details about the raid that killed Osama bin Laden during a speech he didn't know Mark Boal was attending.

WASHINGTON – Newly declassified documents show Tuesday that former CIA Director Leon Panetta revealed secret information to Zero Dark Thirty scriptwriter Mark Boal when Panetta gave a speech at CIA headquarters on the raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Panetta said through a spokesman that he didn't know Boal was in the room.

Judicial Watch filed a request for the more than 200 pages of documents, which the CIA released Tuesday. The documents concerned the internal investigation of its role in the film about the bin Laden raid.

PHOTOS: 9/11 in Film

"I had no idea that individual was in the audience," Panetta said in a statement. "To this day, I wouldn't know him if he walked into the room."

Panetta spokesman Jeremy Bash said Panetta assumed everyone in the audience had the proper clearance to hear the speech.

The documents refer to Panetta revealing the name of the ground commander of the unit that carried out the raid.

STORY: Secret Told to 'Zero Dark Thirty' Filmmakers Won't Be Shared, Judge Rules

Parts of the speech transcript released in the documents Tuesday are still blacked out.

CIA spokesman Dean Boyd said the CIA has since "overhauled its procedures for interaction with the entertainment industry after an extensive internal review." He said the agency now maintains "a centralized record-keeping system for entertainment industry requests and, earlier this year, issued detailed guidance on contact with the industry and support for entertainment-related projects," to make sure classified material is protected.

Boal declined to comment.

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MOVIE REVIEWS

The Extraordinary Tale: Film Review

Fairytale romance meets nightmare in a distinctive, English-language debut from Spain which took best foreign film at the Atlanta Horror Film festival.

The best fairytales are also the darkest, and doesn’t The Extraordinary Tale know it. This is indeed a most unusually-told tale about a bizarre love affair between a woman and a man who are stranded somewhere between real life and fairyland, and between the brightness of Jean-Pierre Jeunet and the darkness of Eraserhead.

PHOTOS: 15 Horror Movies That Offered the Most Bang for the Buck

Having bravely decided to make a tiny new world where the normal rules don’t apply, this fresh, deceptively slight first feature from Jose F. Ortuno and Laura Alvea goes ahead and pretty much succeeds: zany and unsettling by turns, it doubles as a darkly comic satire on contemporary relationships. Though not for all tastes, Tale has already been told at festivals and could appeal to thoughtful art house audiences seeking fresh voices.

Unnamed, gawky She (the strikingly clear-eyed Aida Ballman, debuting here) lives an isolated existence in a very peculiar house. Happy but lonely, she has typed out and sent 1,212 letters in 1,212 days with no reply until one day, she receives one from the like-minded He (Spain-based American Ken Appledorn).

After they meet, the idea of which throws her into a panic, she continues not to speak, still preferring to communicate in writing. They start to live together; he asks whether she’s happy, and her reply is a complex abstract disquisition on what happiness means. She gets pregnant, he gets a job; and the honeymoon is well and truly over, as things suddenly become very bleak indeed.

Despite some heavy themes, and though it demands some indulgence from the viewer in its sillier moments, the sometimes hilarious The Extraordinary Tale just flies by as a viewing experience. It is set entirely in a single room of her house, beautifully dressed down to the last detail by Mar Garcia Mejias to look in its more erotic moments of the photography of Russian Max Sauco, always with the fairy tale sense that a there’s a dark tangled forest just outside the front door. Lighting casts a honey glow over everything, and what looks like white flower blossom falls. Esther Vaquero also deserves mention for her eccentric wardrobe design, featuring layer upon layer of Victorian laciness.

Her German-inflected voiceover apart, the effervescent Ballman is basically doing a heightened, complex version of a circus clown. But the viewer never forgets that this is a lively, radiant young woman too, entirely innocent of the world, fragile and damaged by her relationship with her mother, who rather than tell her fairy stories as a child recited times tables to her -- hence the title, and the resulting psychological damage.

PHOTOS: Hollywood's 20 Masters of Horror: The Twisted Talents Raising the Most Hell

Appledorn’s character is conceived a little more realistically, if only because he gets more lines as he tries to pull his companion in the direction of normal. The pair are clearly happiest when making joyous, abandoned love, which the film doesn’t balk at showing. Their offspring, sadly unidentified in the credits, is a mop of blonde curls on a chubby, angelic face – and memorably scary and expressive.

The Extraordinary Tale is just that, a tale, and there’s no point in trying to make any sense of it at all in terms of realism. It’s best thought of as a child’s take on some standard grown-up themes, picking apart the troubled tapestry of love 2013 style.

Thus people are alienated, fundamentally damaged in some way. They cannot communicate in person with each other on anything but the sexual level, preferring the safe detachment of social media (represented here by the clackety old typewriter into which she frenziedly taps). It’s also about intergenerational misunderstandings (her mother, played by Jane Arnold, lapses mid-sentence into incomprehensible dog-like noises), and about children, and work, and gender expectations.

Dialogue is sometimes over-the-top whimsical – "my mother is older than me" is not a great line, however you deliver it – and sometimes witty: "I learned how to make love, but not how to unmake it." Hector Perez’s lively, catchy score underscores the generally wacky atmosphere. The use of Bob Roberts’ crackly "Do Re Mi Fa So La Ti Do" (1907), Belle Baker’s "Jubilee Blues" (1923) and a slice of death metal from Naetherna add to the general weirdness and help to suggest that the film is set both in time and beyond it – just like a fairytale.

Production: Acheron Films
Cast: Aida Ballman, Ken Appledorn, Mari Paz Sayago, Jane Arnold
Directors: Jose F. Ortuno, Laura Alvea
Screenwriter: Ortuno
Producers: Sonia D. Roncero, Carlos Tunon
Director of photography: Fran Fernandez-Pardo
Music: Héctor Perez
Production designer: Mar Garcia Mejias
Editor: Carlos Crespo Arnold
Sound: Jose Tome
Wardrobe: Esther Vaquero
Sales: Acheron Films
No rating, 79 minutes

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Stable Unstable (Tale’ Nezel): Dubai Review

Mahmoud Hojeij’s first feature comically depicts feelings of insecurity in Lebanon.

Getting some nice results on a limited budget, young writer-director Mahmoud Hojeij parades a slew of normal-wacky characters through the office of a Beirut psychologist in the talky comedy Stable Unstable. Given that a lot of the gags are tied to the Lebanese Arabic dialogue, this is a classic case of comedy struggling to cross borders. Even the metaphor in the title seems aimed at local viewers who have gone through the war years and have come to accept instability as the norm. Local audiences at the Dubai Film Festival laughed out loud, but appreciative smiles are as far as non-Arabic speakers are likely to go.

Smog covers Beirut, where a well-heeled residential building houses the tasteful office of a bearded psychologist. One by one, his patients salute the doorman, step into the elevator and come for their last appointment of the year on New Year’s Eve. The common theme is loneliness and lack of communication. A superficial young wife complains of feeling empty inside, but has no intention of giving up her lover.  A man who repairs store mannequins for a living goes wild in the office, yelling and kicking and breaking things; he’ll be spending New Year’s Eve at a dinner party with his dummies. No wonder he says no one listens to him.

There’s a silent, seductive teenage girl; a domineering mother who tyrannizes her son, and a youth worried about his sperm count. The funniest of the lot is a paranoid patient who comes all the way from Syria for his sessions. He claims it’s because people are always eavesdropping at home, where there’s no freedom of speech, but in the end his real purpose seems to be visiting a nearby massage parlor with a "happy ending."

The film is shot on a handful of sets with simplified visuals that are as easy to read as a cartoon drawing, and easy on the eyes thanks to cinematographer Philippe Van Leeuw’s soft colors. The style is pleasingly essential but one wonders about the number of heads that disappeared out of the frame in its Dubai festival screening. Charbel Haber’s musical score for a string quartet is as tasteful as the rest.

Venue: Dubai Film Festival (Muhr Arab Feature competition), Dec. 9, 2013
Production companies: About Productions in association with Doha Film Institute, AFAC
Cast: Camille Salameh, Fadi Abi Samra, Nada Abou Farhat, Hassan Mrad, Husam Chadat, Yara Abou Haidar, Monzer Baalbaki, Aida Sabra, Ziad Antar, Diamand Abou Abboud, Manal Khader
Director: Mahmoud Hojeij
Screenwriter: Mahmoud Hojeij
Producer: Georges Schoucair
Director of photography: Philippe Van Leeuw
Production designer: Petra Abou Sleiman
Editor: Gladys Joujou
Music: Charbel Haber
No rating, 87 minutes.

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They Are the Dogs (C’est eux les chiens): Dubai Review

A man who has been secretly detained for 30 years by Moroccan authorities is suddenly released during the Arab Spring.

As is evident from the new work that has been screening this year, feature filmmakers are leery of directly representing the Arab Spring. Instead films like They Are the Dogs search for roundabout, ironic ways of approaching the current climate of change and instability. Here a surreal story walks the line between history and farce, human interest and media cynicism. However, the wild comic energy in the first half gets depleted as the film goes on and the funny business unwinds. The saving grace is Hassan Badida’s consummate comic performance in the main role. More topical, intriguing and generally successful than writer-director Hicham Lasri’s punkish first feature The End, Dogs has been making the rounds of specialized fests since it bowed in Cannes ACID earlier this year, picking up awards in Cordoba and Rabat.

It’s 2011 and a dispirited film crew is on the street taping sound-bites from protesters at a demonstration in downtown Casablanca. They hear banal things like, “Why are we protesting? Because life is too expensive.” But they turn out to be fateful words: the same that launched bread riots in the city in 1981, when widespread hunger caused people to revolt. During this earlier turmoil, a man had walked out of his home to buy some trainer wheels for his son’s bike and found himself scooped up by the police as a subversive. Thirty years later he is abruptly released, and the TV crew finds him wandering among the crowd in a daze, unable to remember his own name, only his prison number: 404.  A tall, emaciated fellow in a ragged plaid jacket, he has the same droll, slightly batty expression as the late, great Portuguese actor-director Joao Cesar Monteiro, whom he physically recalls.

The pompous TV journalist, grumpy old cameraman and young soundman slowly realize there’s a big story here. They promise to help him locate his wife and kids if he’ll agree to an interview, which he continually puts off. Since everyone believes he’s dead, the search for his family is not an easy one, and the deadpan script throws in set-backs like an old friend having a heart attack when he hears he’s still alive. Gradually 404 becomes obsessed about finding out what remains of his past, and confusion gives way to determination.

Lasri and D.P. Ali Benjelloun take the risk of shooting everything from the TV camera’s p.o.v., which distances the action. But it is a cleverly used device, particularly funny in a classic scene when a thief steals the camera and everyone starts running after him. Too bad that this very promising energy and humor unravels. The TV crew turns into a total caricature, leaving the viewer with only the old man to be interested in. But Badida’s 404 never seems to lose his kooky steam, flailing his arms wildly to fight off tormentors or express his joy in a little dance.

Morocco’s political situation furnishes a serious undercurrent to his personal drama. The men who “disappeared” in 1981 have now been forgotten, but the winds of revolt are still around.  Lasri winds it up nicely in a low-key final scene.

Venue: Dubai Film Festival (Muhr Arab Feature competition), Dec. 9, 2013.
Production company: Ali n’ Films
Cast: Hassan Badida, Yahya El Fandi, Imad Fijaj, Jalal Bouftaim
Director: Hicham Lasri
Screenwriter: Hicham Lasri
Producer: Nabil Ayouch
Executive producer: Frantz Richard
Director of photography: Ali Benjelloun
Editor: Safaa Baraka
No rating, 85 minutes.

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Sepideh - Reaching for the Stars: IDFA Review

Berit Madsen's Danish documentary, selected for competition at both IDFA and Sundance, chronicles the dreams and frustrations of a teenage Iranian girl.

Planet Earth's luminaries can outdazzle anything in the heavens, as illustrated by Berit Madsen's strenuously uplifting documentary Sepideh - Reaching for the Stars (also known simply as Sepideh). While enlivened by the determination and charisma of its eponymous heroine, an Iranian teenage astronomer with astronautical aspirations, this paean to boundary-pushing independence never itself threatens to break new ground.

Launching at IDFA, the Danish production by debutant Berit Madsen has secured a North American bow in Sundance's World Cinema Documentary Competition, and can doubtless expect further festival and small-screen bookings. Events and sidebars specializing in human-rights matters and young people's issues will provide primary exposure before this quiet crowdpleaser finds its long-term role in educational contexts.

Astronomy has long held an exalted position within Islam, a religion whose symbol features a crescent moon and a star. Membership of an Astronomy Club thus grants unmarried females an unusual degree of latitude, with opportunities for the sexes to meet after dark and observe the heavens. Sepideh Hooshyar from the Fars province, whose transition from 16 to 18 is telescoped into the film's 80-odd minutes, is a particularly avid adherent of this unique constellation of physics, math, geography and anthropology.

Her role-model is Iranian-American Anousheh Ansari, the first female space-tourist: "I want this to be an inspiring story," Ansari is heard remarking, "I believe that if you want something badly enough, it will happen." The documentary draws a discreet veil over the fact that Ansari ponied up to go into space, emphasizing instead how Sepideh is fired up by her countrywoman's example. A passing reference to Ansari as "the first woman in space," meanwhile, will come as news to 1960s cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova.

Driven by an desire to honor her late father, and a frequent letter-writer to Albert Einstein, Sepideh sticks to her ambitions in the face of maternal bemusement ("learn how to cook!") and outright opposition from her unapologetically traditionalist uncle. The latter hissably epitomizes an entire national system of patriarchal restriction and repression which the film takes for granted and never attempts to explain or explore, instead concentrating on Sepideh reacts to such limitations.

As is so often the case in documentaries about spirited young religious women, it isn't too long before the specter of marriage appears, casting a potential shadow over Sepideh's unapologetic drive for self-realization ("I'm a free person!"). Matrimony, however, doesn't necessarily preclude academic and professional progress. And Sepideh's thirtyish suitor is much less of a presence than her astronomy tutor Kabiri, a progressive-minded counterbalance to her uncle's bull-headed naysaying.

Iran has a notably youthful demographic spread just now , and Sepideh provides plenty of grounds for optimism as regards the turbulent country's future. Madsen's fundamentally dead-serious concern with female empowerment and education is leavened by welcome moments of dry humor - Agora meets Persepolis, perhaps. In what's generally a functional, even formulaic picture in terms of visuals and overall tone, near-relentlessly over-scored in accordance to current documentary conventions, nocturnal cinematography by Babak Tafreshi and Oshin D Zakarian provides suitably celestial, Malickian grace-notes.

Venue: International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (Feature-Length Competition), 24 November 2013
Production company: Radiator Film
Director / Screenwriter: Berit Madsen
Producers: Stefan Frost, Henrik Underbjerg
Director of photography: Mohammad Reza Jahan Panah
Editor: Peter Winther
Music: Niklas Schak, Tin Soheili
Sales: Danish Film Institute, Copenhagen
No MPAA rating, 88 minutes

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The Mice Room (Odet el Feran): Dubai Review

Short films by six young directors are interwoven in tales from Alexandria, Egypt.

Six new Egyptian directors hatch together in The Mice Room, a feature film interweaving half a dozen everyday stories set in Alexandria. There is no real thematic thread, however, other than what viewers can piece together on their own. Editor Islam Kamal deserves credit for making this project work at all, but it remains a compendium of six short films cleverly strung together, with limited appeal outside local fests.  

Producing as well as writing and directing are Nermeen Salem, Mohamed Zedan, Mohamad El-Hadidi, Mayye Zayed, Hend Bakr, Ahmed Magdy Morsy.

A film with this mysterious a title (never explained) could have offered something a little more off the beaten track. Three and a half years in the making, it understandably has little to do with recent political events. Yet each episode contains some nice moments of closely observed characters and relationships that shows talent behind the camera.

The most memorable story is probably the one that features acclaimed actress Hanan Youssef as a new widow who disturbs the household by sleeping all day and staying awake at night. In another story, a young man (Zeyad Salem) tries to make up for lost time with his dying father (Moustafa Darwish). More surreally, an eccentric elderly man in his pajamas (Kamal Ismail) stands on the sidewalk all day smiling, gazing across traffic at the Mediterranean sea. A girl (Noura Saafan) seems paralyzed with fright as her wedding day approaches, while a career girl (Nihad Yahia) eagerly gets ready to leave the country.

Getting the most laughs with its gentle humor is a small girl (Malak Magdy) concerned for her aged granny, who has just had an operation. Her childish capers in the mosque, while the old women recite the Quran, offer one of the film’s freshest and most unexpected moments.

Venue: Dubai Film Festival (Muhr Arab Feature competition), Dec. 8, 2013.
Production companies: Rufy’s in association with Fig Leaf Studios, Enjaaz
Cast:  Hanan Youssef, Moustafa Darwish, Noura Saaffan, Nihad Yahia, Kamal Ismail, Malak Magdy, Zeyad Salem
Directors/Screenwriters/Producers: Nermeen Salem, Mohamed Zedan, Mohamad El-Hadidi, Mayye Zayed, Hend Bakr, Ahmed Magdy Morsy
Executive producer: Mark Lotfy
Directors of photography: Mohamad El-Hadid, Mayye Zayed, Islam Kamal
Production designers: Nehal Ghanem, Emad Maher, Nermeen Salem, Sara Hany
Editor: Islam Kamal
Music: Anna Drubich
No rating, 85 minutes.

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Durban Poison: Dubai Review

Cult South African director Andrew Worsdale makes his belated comeback with this pedestrian murder thriller inspired by a real-life killer couple.

A trigger-happy bloodbath in the tradition of Bonnie and Clyde or Natural Born Killers, this gritty South African crime thriller has a long and troubled history. Writer-director Andrew Worsdale conceived it almost 30 years ago, shortly before his cultish 1987 debut feature, Shot Down, was banned by the apartheid-era regime for having “no artistic merit whatsoever.” Worsdale became an actor, putting together various productions of Durban Poison over the decades, but none ever came to fruition. Only now has he finally stepped behind the camera again to realize his dream project.

Durban Poison stars screen debutante Cara Roberts as Joline, a vulnerable young woman who works as a prostitute on the Durban docks. Her life takes a fateful turn when she meets charismatic minor hoodlum Piet, played by Brandon Auret, best known internationally for his roles in Neill Blomkamp’s District 9 and Elysium. The pair’s stormy relationship soon progresses to drug dealing, robbery and murder. Already a festival prizewinner in South Africa, Worsdale’s lowlife love story screens at the Dubai International Film Festival this week, where it is eligible in the Muhr Asia/Africa Awards category. But this trite, overfamiliar walk on the wild side seems unlikely to make much noise outside domestic and festival circles.

Named after a globally renowned strain of South African marijuana, Durban Poison is told in a salty mix of English and slang-heavy Afrikaans. The plot was inspired by the locally notorious case of Charmaine Phillips and Pieter Grundlingh, who killed four people in the early 1980s. The 19-year-old Phillips admitted responsibility, a false claim that she later revealed was part of a pre-agreed pact to save Grundlingh from the death penalty. He confessed and was hanged anyway. Phillips only learned of this confession years after, and applied to the late Nelson Mandela for clemency. She was released on parole in 2004 after almost two decades behind bars.

Told in flashback and structured as a partial road movie, Worsdale’s film reshuffles the true story, changing names and contriving a more dramatic finale. The subject matter is hardly original, though there is exotic appeal for non-domestic audiences in seeing a South African drama set among the white underclass, with no hint of racial politics. Sadly that novelty soon wears pretty thin under the steady grind of narrative cliche and leaden pacing. The characters are one-dimensional, the performances wooden and much of the dialog woefully clunky. The rudimentary script offers no psychological or social motivation for the crimes, failing to generate the dramatic tension and romantic chemistry that the story demands.

In all fairness, Roberts performs modestly well in her debut feature, her inexperience often seeming refreshingly naturalistic compared to the hammy overacting of her more seasoned co-stars. The final twist reframes all that has gone before, even if it feels more like a gentle poke rather than a knockout punch. Ultimately, Durban Poison is a disappointing trip, delivering just a mild high instead of mind-blowing intensity. It is easy to see why Worsdale had so much trouble raising interest in such a hackneyed yarn, but hard to understand why he persisted so long.

Production company: Karoo Film Company

Producers: Carmel Nayanah, Deon Meyer, Diony Kempen

Cast: Brandon Auret, Cara Roberts, Gys De Villiers, Marcel Van Heerden

Director: Andrew Worsdale

Writer: Andrew Worsdale

Cinematographer: William Collinson

Editors: Byron Davis, Ronelle Loots

Composer: Jim Neversink

Sales company: Karoo Film Company

Unrated, 94 minutes

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Champ of the Camp: Dubai Review

Award-winning Lebanese documaker Mahmoud Kaabour finds an entertainment angle in the first feature-length study of life in the UAE labor camps

The paradise of the Emirates has never seemed to extend to the Asian labor force that is hired to “build the dream cities of the Arab world” at paltry wages, even if the pay is advantageous compared to what is available on their home turf. The living conditions in workers’ camps continue to be an officially sensitive subject, making  Champ of the Camp all the more interesting as the first feature-length doc to approach the subject. One of the first films to get permission to shoot in the camps, it is however very careful what it says and shows. Director Mahmoud Kaabour and producer Eva Sayre’s winning strategy is to center the film around an annual songfest competition open to workers living in 70 camps around the Emirates. This adds a note of humor to their touching stories, leaving viewers both entertained and somewhat wiser about what it means to leave family and home behind to earn a living in a searing desert land. This, and the credentials of Lebanese-born Kaabour (Being Osama, Grandma A Thousand Times), should give the film a good chance to circulate internationally.

Though there are undoubtedly far more painful stories to tell from the camps, the mass excitement generated by the Western Union Champ of the Camp songfest (now in its seventh year) offers viewers a first, offbeat window on an unknown world. Thousands of workers from 70 different labor camps scattered across the Emirate principalities are shown auditioning at talent searches, which speed through quarter finals and semi-finals until six finalists remain.  Under the able refereeing of local singer Shabana, they not only sing but have to instantly recognize the opening notes of Bollywood songs.

Amusingly, most of the men hail from the Indian subcontinent and know these popular films and songs by heart. Shahrukh Khan is a fave of the younger generation, while a contestant named Dattu favors Amitabh Bachchan and Raj Kapoor. Auditions are filmed in a gaudy pop style of Indian cable TV, punctuated by snatches of Hindi movies excerpts, and culminates in Shabana’s performance of the farcically sizzling number “My Name Is Sheila” from the Hindi  blockbuster Tees Mahr Khan, which sends the men into ecstasy. 

Edited into all this fun are the contestants’ everyday lives. Mechanics, plumbers, sweepers and construction workers live in plain concrete buildings eight to a room, furnished with bunk beds and one small cabinet houses for their private possessions. No one is shown complaining, though “It does feel a little like jail,” laughs one man, and it isn’t hard to see why. Talking about their hardships and the touching sacrifices they make for their families back home is Ms. Rupa Vinod, the right-on managing director of competition organizer Right Track Advertising.

Kaabour portrays the men as individuals who are eager, laughing competitors, but their haunting eyes more than once glisten with tears of homesickness. Many have been away from their loved ones in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh for more than two years. Dattu has been in Dubai for six years; he receives $272 a month in wages and he gave the agency $2,340 to bring him over. A boy who longs for his mother cries on camera saying “I am helpless, I have to be here.” But it feels great to send home $140, making a month’s sweat-drenched work worth it.  Chandrama, a plumber, talks about how good it felt to build Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, in a record three years. Adnan, another finalist, saves up to build a house in Pakistan while others just send money home via Western Union (the main sponsor of the singing contest) to pay for their kids’ tuition.

Song is a dream world for all of them, and the film makes good use of the contrast to round out their lives.  Though lensing has some rough on-site edges, the scenes are full of expressive visuals and quirky camera angles.

Venue: Dubai Film Festival (Arabian Nights)
Production companies: Veritas Films in association with Creative Kettle, Doha Film Institute, Screen Institute Beirut
Director/Screenwriter: Mahmoud Kaabour
Producer: Eva Sayre
Director of photography: Benjamin Pritchard
Editors: Alan Mackay, Arwa Merchant
Music: Ahmed Ghannoum
No rating, 75 minutes

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Men Show Movies and Women Their Breasts: Turin Review

A young female film director tackles gender politics at the Cannes film festival in this slight but resourceful docu-comedy.

Caustic comedies about the internal politics of the movie business tend to be made by jaded elder statesmen who have been through the Hollywood machine, as in Robert Altman’s The Player or Barry Levinson’s What Just Happened. But this satirical docu-fiction from the young German writer-director Isabell Šuba offers a more refreshing outsider’s perspective, lampooning both the narcissism of aspiring film-makers and the pomposity of the power brokers who decide their fate.

Shot guerrilla-style in just five days at the rain-soaked Cannes film festival, Šuba’s low-budget feature inevitably feels a little raw. But its subject matter should ensure further festival bookings, especially those with interest in LGBT and feminist themes. While commercial prospects will be slender, the prickly in-joke humor may appeal to niche distributors and Europhile cineastes overseas.

In an inspired piece of lateral thinking, Šuba conceived her debut feature following an invitation to screen her short film Chica XX Mujer in Cannes in 2012. First she cast an actor to impersonate her at the festival, with Anne Haug not only taking her Cannes pass but also attending screenings and conducting interviews in character. Sharing cramped accommodation outside town, the fictionalized Isabell and her inept producer David (Šuba’s real-life co-producer Matthias Weidenhöfer) bicker like an old married couple as they miss meetings, gatecrash parties, pitch projects to potential funders and hook up with ex-lovers. Self-referential documentary blurs into semi-improvised drama.

For anyone who has ever attended Cannes on a tight budget, Šuba’s film will be a painfully accurate reminder of the panicky desperation and pushy careerism that lies behind the razzle-dazzle surface glamor. But beyond that narrow audience demographic, Men Show Movies and Women Their Breasts is a well-observed behind-the-scenes satire with a playfully deadpan tone akin to TV comedies such as Extras or Curb Your Enthusiasm. Among the film’s pleasures are its dreamy piano score, its non-fiction cameos by passing celebrities and festival freaks, and its punchy close-up shots of Isabell and David grooming themselves before heading out to fight for their careers.

Less impressively, Šuba’s freewheeling micro-budget comedy feels like a scrappy home movie in places. It also never quite delivers the feminist sting implicit in its title, since critique of movie industry sexism is only a minor part of the comic mix, and there are arguably more unsympathetic females than males among the tight cast of characters. A sharper focus and some bigger targets might have elevated Men Show Movies and Women Their Breasts from enjoyable DIY experiment to heavy-hitting satire. Then again, as a disdainful TV executive says in one of the film’s most brutal pitching scenes, “a good title is half the battle.”

Production company: Beauty Killed The Beast

Producers: Matthias Weidenhöfer, Isabell Šuba

Starring: Anne Haug, Matthias Weidenhöfer, Eva Bay

Director: Isabell Šuba

Writers: Isabell Šuba, Lisa Glock

Cinematographer: Johannes Louis

Editor: Clemens Walter

Music: Hektor Marroquin, Tubbe

Sales company: HFF Konrad Wolf, Potsdam-Babelsberg

Unrated, 83 minutes

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Mother Plant (Planta madre): Huelva Review

An aging Peruvian rocker journeys down the Amazon in search of his own personal heart of darkness in Gianfranco Quattrini’s second feature, co-scripted by Lucia Puenzo.

The old and the new of Latin America come together into a slightly woozy whole in Gianfranco Quattrini’s intriguing, flawed Mother Plant. This meandering tale of a frankly disagreeable 60’s rocker trying to settle scores and heal scars is dramatically pretty inert, but its ambitious attempts to fuse together disparate elements of the culture into something new are never less than interesting. Produced by members of the Puenzo family (father Luis won an Academy Award in 1984, daughter Lucia, co-scripting here, made Argentina’s Oscar submission this year), Plant should take root at festivals with a Latin-American slant.

Former rock star Diamond Santoro (Robertino Granados), his shades, stubble and attitude betraying his general state of malaise, returns from the U.S. to Iquitos in Peru to be met by the former girlfriend Pierina (Camila Perisse) of his long-deceased brother Nicky (Manuel Fanego), visions of whom regularly appear to him. Santoro feels responsible for his brother’s death, and hasn’t written a single song since it happened.

The idea is mooted that Santoro may play at a local concert of cumbia music -- the traditional Peruvian dance music that the rock of Santoro and his peers helped to displace in the 60s. But Santoro’s real reason for returning is that, guided by a notebook of Nicky’s, he wishes to undertake a journey which his brother could not -- to visit a shaman called Solon (real-life shaman, charisma-oozing Agustin Rivas Vasquez) deep in the Amazon jungle to try out a hallucinatory drug called ayahuasca. Accompanied by Pierina and two musicians, Fefe (Santiago Pedrero), and Pato (Rafael Ferro) -- in debt and on the run from a couple of nasty mafia types in a clumsily shoehorned-in subplot -- Santo sets out on a riverboat, amusingly called the Titanic VII, for Tres Fronteras, where Peru, Colombia and Brazil meet.

These atmospheric, beautifully-shot Amazon sequences are the film’s strongest. Throughout the duration, the action shuttles schematically between past and present. In the past, the brothers grow up, achieve stardom, and fall victim to sibling rivalry in scenes that are clichéd but grungily authentic with their Marshall stacks and their drugs – but forced into ellipsis, the script was always going to struggle to bring anything new to the table.

In the present, Granados shuffles grumpily around in an oddly-conceived role for which the instructions seem to have been to carefully excise every last drop of sympathy. While the younger Santoro (Juan Ignacio Martinez) was at least dynamic, in later life he’s just a wreck: while those who surround him might impressed by having the great Diamond Santoro in their midst, the viewer is less so. The result is that though for him the stakes of Santoro’s journey towards a form of hallucinogenic reconciliation with his brother are high for him personally, the viewer doesn’t feel them.

Buried under all of this there’s the interesting of story of how, after selling his soul to Americana in his music, Santoro can only find peace by returning to the very origins of his culture – but as a theme it does remain both buried and pretty much unexplored.

Director of photography Ivan Gierasinchuk’s widescreen makes the most of the wide, sluggish stretches of the Amazon as Santoro slowly drifts towards his heart of darkness. Gierasinchuk is also key to the memorably off-kilter, slightly trippy mood of the film, which is its strongest suit. Thankfully, it’s controlled and never strays into over-the-top, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas territory. The music made by the Santoro brothers in the 60’s is bog-standard heavy rock; the indigenous music-inflected sections work better.

The film's original title was Diamond Santoro y la soga de los muertos – Diamond Santoro and the Dead Man’s Rope – which make more sense than the final title: although the mother of Santoro and Nicky is indeed conspicuous by her absence.

Production: Historias Cinematograficas, Puenzo Hnos, Planta Madre Cine, Alba Produzioni, Aluzcine
Cast: Robertino Granados, Manuel Fanego, Emiliano Carrazone, Camila Perisse, Agustín Rivas Vasquez, Rafael Ferro, Santiago Pedrero, Lucho Caceres, Manolo Rojas. Magdyel Ugaz, Andrea Prodan
Director: Gianfranco Quattrini
Screenwriters: Lucia Puenzo, Leonel D'Agostino, Quattrini
Producers: Luis Puenzo, Esteban Puenzo, Quattrini, Cesar Fajardo, Rosanna Seregni
Director of photography: Ivan Gierasinchuk
Music: Ariel Minimal, Marcelo Chaves, Lito Castro, Agustin Rivas Vasquez
Production designer: Marcelo Chaves, Sandro Angobaldo
Editor: Hugo Primero, Quattrini
Sound: Carlos Abbate
Wardrobe: Ludmila Fincic, Leslie Hinojosa

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Denok and Gareng: Luang Prabang Review

Dwi Sujanti Nugraheni's first feature-length documentary features a young couple's quotidian struggle to get by as they tend to their pig farm in an Indonesian village.

Denok and Gareng begins quite grimly: through on-screen texts, director Dwi Sujanti Nugraheni outlines how Denok, one half of her first documentary's titular couple, ran away from home at 14, and spent time peddled drugs in the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta for a living. And as video clips of her marriage to Gareng are shown, accompanying texts concludes how the happy times are relatively shortlived as the bridegroom's father soon ran off, leaving the family to confront his huge debt.

Indeed, what follows is a chronicle of Denok and Gareng's struggle to stay afloat, as they slave away at their pig farm in a village in central Java in order to earn a living not just for themselves but for Gareng's mother, brothers and also the young couple's toddler. But in miserablism Dwi does not dwell: rather than stripping them of their integrity by just heightening their poverty as some kind of exotica, Denok and Gareng is a vibrant piece about vibrantly full-fleshed individuals leading lives defined by principles and their own philosophies.

As an unobtrusive, empathetic and engaging piece about individuals who are not, as Gareng's mother jokingly said at the end of the film, "hungover by the situation", it's perhaps unsurprising – and indeed heartening – that the documentary has been garlanded at the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam, DOK Fest Munich, the Yamagata International Documentary Film Festival, the Salaya Doc festival in Bangkok, and back home at Yogyakarta's Jogya-NETPAC Asian Film Festival. Its screening at the Luang Prabang Film Festival on Dec. 8 should simply be yet another booking in international tour.

Never for a moment betraying even a small modicum of artifice, the narration-free Denok and Gareng allows its protagonists to reveal their personalities and circumstances naturally, with a rapport that suggests a collective perfectly able to keep themselves above water with affection in the face of adversity, spiced up by general dosages of humor.

The fact that Dwi has known the couple since they were street kids probably contributed in this, but her direction and Gregorius Arya Dhipayana's editing also helped, with an accumulation of anecdotes which, though deadpanned by its subjects, actually unpeels their marginalized status in their community: a segment when the couple instructed their daughter not to talk about their real profession in her Islamic school – Muslims are to deem pigs unclean – is swiftly followed by another conversation when Denok questions why Gareng wasn't invited to regular religious rituals.

Not that Dwi has skimmed the unnerving difficulties the couple and their family have to confront on a daily basis: Gareng is seen regularly scavenging stinking garbage dumps to find his pigs' next meal – a gooey swill Denok makes by stirring all sorts of leftovers by hand. The family also are seen selling off nearly anything they have to make ends meet, ranging from their VCD player to their sewing machine. But the documentary never patronizes the couple and their kin, these are individuals who are quietly determined to make things work and laugh in the face of adversity, such as when Gareng jokes, without bitterness, that the rich's worries are different to his because they "make them bald," and that "without debt my life wouldn't be complete".

But tensions do exist in such exasperating circumstances, and Dwi has managed to capture moments that reveals how some kind of ugliness could possibly come to the surface from all this panged-up angst. A jokey pillow fight spirals into a real row with Gareng chastening Denok for her "lack of respect," and how Gareng goes into meltdown after his brother Soesan crashes his motorcycle in a drunken stupor, and how nobody – pedestrians, policemen or anyone – cares about him and his family.

The fury soon subsides and life continues; it's a kind of toughness that is seen in Gareng and his mother's tough love against the younger members of the family, when they will at the same time cheer up the wayward youngest brother Pur by offering to buy him chicken noodles – but he will have the food thrown in his face and stuck up his backside if he is to waste any of it. It's exactly how these divergent emotional moments are represented, in a mix of wit and grit, that elevates Denok and Gareng beyond single-dimensional indulgences into someone else's destitution.

Venue: Luang Prabang Film Festival
Production Companies: Jawa Dwipa Films in association with credo:film
Director: Dwi Sujanti Nugraheni
Writer: Dwi Sjuanti Nugraheni
Cinematographer: Kurnia Yudha
Sound: Abdi Kusuma Surbakti
Editor: Gregorius Arya Dhipayana
International Sales: credo:international
In Indonesian
89 minutes

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Closer to the Moon: Film Review

Vera Farmiga stars in a title revolving around convicted bank robbers who are forced to reenact their crimes for a propaganda film.

A quintet of Jews seeing their status drop in postwar Romania rob a bank in Nae Caranfil's Closer to the Moon, only to be caught, convicted, and forced to reenact their crime in a slyly anti-Semitic propaganda film. Though based on a true story, the film discards some of its claim to authenticity right off the bat, casting Brits and Americans in all the leads and having them speak English instead of Romanian; later, it will have trouble establishing the gang's motives for a crime they all but knew would lead to their execution. Stateside potential is modest for the semi-convincing yet enjoyable tale, relying on familiar names in a cast that acquits itself well given the demands of the unusual plot.

Led by a high-ranking police officer (Mark Strong's Max Rosenthal) and the political academic Alice (Vera Farmiga), the five friends had been wartime resistance fighters and later attained prominent positions in the Communist party. As years wore on, though, Jews and intellectuals found their influence waning. As the movie would have it, the former movers-and-shakers decided to rob the bank as a political provocation, preferring to receive death sentences if they were caught than to live lives of diminishing excitement.

The film opens with their flamboyant crime, a quick caper in which they pulled up to a national bank in trucks, announced to bystanders that they were shooting a movie, and hijacked a poorly guarded van delivering cash. One witness is Virgil (Harry Lloyd), a fresh-faced waiter who, believing he has seen a real film shoot, immediately decides to pursue filmmaking.

Cut to some time later, when Virgil is apprentice to an alcoholic director and often gets to do his boss's job. Assigned to film the kangaroo-court trial of some accused thieves, he's shocked to see the faux-moviemakers. After they're convicted, and Party officials decide to praise the State's efficiency in a film dramatizing their scheme and capture, he's part of the beleaguered crew.

This hokey documentary actually was made (we see scenes in the end credits), and Caranfil imagines its production as a bureaucrat-monitored affair in which the convicts practically ran the show, cavorting and playing dress-up for the cameras while Virgil looks on admiringly. Their mirth during all this (even at their sentencing, they can barely suppress giggles) is difficult to digest, too close to actual merriment to be considered absurdist gallows humor. But their camaraderie sustains things while the script teases with near-happy endings and flashbacks to the plotting of the heist. Late in the film Caranfil returns to a rooftop birthday dinner where Max has the idea for the crime and sells his pals on it, with a big moon in the sky and talk of the Space Race illustrating his longing for greatness. The dialogue may not sell viewers on the motivations for a robbery where the loot was a nearly worthless currency, but the setting offers a melancholy that would be welcome elsewhere in the film.

Production Company: Mandragora Movies, Agresywna Banda

Cast: Vera Farmiga, Mark Strong, Harry Lloyd, Anton Lesser, Joe Armstrong, Christian McKay

Director-Screenwriter: Nae Caranfil

Producers: Michael Fitzgerald, Denis Friedman, Alessandro Leone, Bobby Paunescu, Renata Ranieri

Executive producers: Penelope Glass, Ugo Tucci

Director of photography: Marius Panduru

Production designer: Christian Niculescu

Music: Laurent Couson

Costume designer: Doina Levinta

Editors: Larry Madaras, Roberto Silvi

No rating, 112 minutes

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The Repairman: Turin Review

This amiable Italian debut explores the tragicomic love life of a small-town slacker.

A small-town repairman struggles to fix a dysfunctional relationship in this genial Italian rom-com. Claiming to be inspired by real events, The Repairman marks the feature debut of writer-director Paolo Mitton, who previously worked in digital effects on big-budget projects including Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Alien Vs Predator and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Screened at the Turin Film Festival last week, this is a sweet little story with modest word-of-mouth commercial potential outside Italy, particularly if marketed to audiences who miss Woody Allen’s early, funny films.

Daniele Savoca gives a puppyish performance as Scanio, an amiable beta-male geek with an unruly beard and a precarious job doing freelance repairs for a coffee-machine company. Surrounded by more successful friends, living in a crumbling apartment owned a domineering landlady, Scanio’s loser-ish life shuffles along aimlessly until he meets Helena (Hannah Croft), a British expat with a budding career as a corporate consultant. They move in together, but their romance slowly unravels due to Scanio’s slacker lifestyle and increasingly eccentric behavior, inventing useless gadgets and daydreaming of Nobel Prizes instead of looking for work.

The Repairman is a slight and familiar story, powered by gentle observational humor and an agreeably jaunty musical score. Divided into episodic chapters, with a couple of time-jumping loops in the non-linear narrative, the structure is more tricksy that it first appears. Mitton and his co-writer Francesco Scarrone frame the main action as a flashback, a rambling anecdote related by Scanio to his fellow traffic offenders at a speed awareness course. Crucially, his Woody-ish brand of emotionally needy neurosis is ultimately more charming than punchable.

Mitton does not reinvent the rom-com rulebook with The Repairman, which takes the soft option of bittersweet whimsy rather than risk any darker insights into real-life relationships. That said, this polished semi-autobiographical debut resists the easy cop-out of a feelgood fantasy finale. It also boasts an impressive technical finish considering its slender budget, reportedly less than $300,000. David Rom’s cinematography captures small-town Italy in handsome autumnal tones, while a handful of unobtrusive digital effects lend the film a light sprinkle of magical realism, notably a duck that sails through the opening credits and later becomes a symbolic motif for Scanio’s romantic woes.

Production companies: Aida Productions, Seven Stills Pictures

Producers: Paolo Giangrasso, Filippo Margiaria

Starring: Daniele Savoca, Hannah Croft, Francesca Porrin, Paolo Giangrasso

Director: Paolo Mitton

Writers: Paolo Mitton, Francesco Scarrone

Cinematographer: David Rom

Editor: Enrico Giovannone, Matteo Paolini

Music: Alan Brunetta, Ricky Mantoan

Sales company: Aida Productions

Unrated, 89 minutes

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The Scent of Burning Grass (Mui Co Chay): Luang Prabang Review

Vietnam's Foreign Language Oscar entry last year chronicles four young soldiers' tribulations trying to fight back U.S. forces during the bloody siege of Quong Tri in 1972.

It's hardly a surprise the Vietnamese film regulators would choose The Scent of Burning Grass to be the Southeast Asian nation's Foreign Language Academy Award entry last year. Epic in scale (at least in the country's terms, with its protracted and highly pyrotechnical battle scenes) and carrying ample political significance (it marks the 40th anniversary of one of the bloodiest episodes in the Vietnam War), Nguyen Huu Muoi's film ticks every box in how Hanoi would want the country and its film industry's presence to be felt in the US.

But it's also inevitable that the 97-minute film, which is based on memoirs from real-life soldiers having fought in the 81-day defence of the Quang Tri citadel against US-backed South Vietnamese forces in the summer of 1972, wouldn't really register with Academy members helping to finesse the shortlist. Bookended by an aged survivor's lament about his fallen comrades and motored by many a trope of the classic war-film genre, Scent probably takes too much of its cue from Saving Private Ryan – while naturally not being able to match the visual, stirring spectacle of Steven Spielberg's Hollywood blockbuster because of its economic, technical and political constraints.

Indeed, the film probably wouldn't travel well apart from to either regional festivals – such as the five-day event in the Laotian city of Luang Prabang, where the film was screened from a DVD at on Friday – or possible bookings at specific Vietnam War-themed showcases.

To dismiss Scent as merely propaganda, however, will simply be churlish. While the film still valorizes those who died in fighting the US and its local South Vietnamese proxy army during that decade-long war, a humanist overtone is still very much evident as the film seeks to reveal more about the young conscripts' state of mind. In a way, Scent's backward and slightly more multiplistic view of geopolitics and history could be seen as a slightly less contentious successor to the 2010 film Don't Burn, in which a US intelligence services operative readjusts his caricatured perceptions of the so-called "Viet Cong" through the reading of a late North Vietnamese doctor's wartime notebook and then his returning of the documents to his daughter.

What marks Scent is its adherence to the character-development and narrative-flow conventions of many a war film beyond its shores. The four soldiers are sharply delineated types: Hoang (Nguyen Nang Tung), with the older version played by the director himself) is the child-faced poet; Thang (Dang To Tuan) is the thinker who pens an essay (correctly) predicting a win for the communist north in April 1975; Thanh (Le Van Thom) is the prankster; and Long (Nguyen Thanh Son) the loverboy hailing from a dysfunctional family. Leading them through torturous drills is the harsh platoon leader Phong (Le Chi Kien) – someone who would, of course, prove to be a father figure proud to the end of his boys.

Proving how even this particular part of undisputed glory days in Hanoi's historical discourse could be moved about for a bit, there are frequent moments of comic relief: the oft-deployed slapstick gag of a private hitting of his supervisors' privates during training, or Thanh's performances in drag both during training and then during a lull on the frontline. And these soldiers are also hardly fearless, dogmatic patriots, too: they fret before crossing a river exposed to the enemy's sniper fire, and flounder as they recount how the were stepping on sunken cadavers of their fellow conscripts as they struggle in the water; searching through the pockets of an enemy combatant's corpses and finding a picture of his mother, the protagonists also lament how every conscript is equal in having a family back home.

The last episode happens after the characters went to the length of burying the dead South Vietnamese soldier on a live battlefield and under threat of enemy fire; it's an act heightening the gallantry of "our boys" perhaps excessively. There are still certain lines to be toed – but don't all war films, whether it be American, Japanese or Vietnamese, have to look at a certain bottom line anyway? It's a case of one step at a time, and Muoi's film presents a small one forward: both to a more contemplative approach towards history, but – worryingly, maybe? – to the conventions of mainstream commercial filmmaking.

Venue: Luang Prabang Film Festival
Production Company: Vietnam Feature Film Company
Director: Nguyen Huu Moi
Cast: Nguyen Nang Tung, Nguyen Thanh Son, Dang To Tuan, Le Van Thom, Le Chi Kien
Producer: Vu Din Than
Screenwriter: Hoang Nhuan Cam
Director of Cinematography: Pham Thanh Ha
Editor: Vuong Duoc
Music: Pham Quoc Truong
Art Designer: Do Huong Quan
In Vietnamese
97 minutes

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The Nightingale (Ye Ying/Le promeneur d'oiseau): Film Review

The second-ever official French-Chinese co-production sees French director Philippe Muyl adapt his 2002 film about the bond-building journey between an old man and a young girl to rural, southwestern China.

Theoretically, Philippe Muyl's latest film is a Chinese take on his last feature The Butterfly (Le papillon); in reality, The Nightingale is similar to the 2002 film only in spirit, and only just. Both involve an old man and a young girl establishing some kind of rapport on a journey across the countryside; but whereas The Butterfly sees a vibrant child imposing herself on a grumpy pensioner, The Nightingale is a story about a benign retiree forging a solid bond with his petulant granddaughter.

The alteration in the dynamics between the two characters makes perfect sense as Muyl relocates his original French story to China for what is now the second-ever official co-production between the two countries. With Beijing's long-running one-child policy, the issue of parents pampering their offspring to the point of creating a generation of spoilt brats has been much discussed in recent years; The Nightingale's narrative arc of teasing a kid's open, curious inner self out her egocentric, iPad-attached shell is perhaps what the Chinese authorities would really want to see.

Whether audiences would warm to this, however, is another matter. Boasting of Sun Ming's lavish cinematography – the rural landscapes of the southwestern Chinese province of Guangxi are rendered in remarkably lush, warm tones, as is Beijing's new bourgeois milieu rendered cold and unfriendly – and an engaging performance from Li Baotian (Ju Dou) as the grandfather, The Nightingale is technically remarkable. Beyond its socio-political context, however, the film offers hardly anything inventive to the familiar generation-gap rite-of-passage dramedy; festival bookings – such as its premiere in Busan, and then the outing on Thursday at the ScreenSingapore trade event – are probably where the film's future lies rather than commercial runs in either France or China.

In the film, veteran actor Li plays Zhu Zhigen, a widower who lives on his own in a small apartment in an old tenement in Beijing; on the other side of town lives Renxing (newcomer Yang Xinyi), who spends most of her days fiddling with his digital gadgets in the very affluent (but lonely) life provided to her by her jet-setting architect father Chongyi (Qin Hao, Spring Fever) and business executive mother Qianying (Li Xiaoran, Les filles du botaniste).

Their worlds are destined to be disparate – driven not just between the pair's generational differences, but also Zhigen's rift with his son – until the parents are forced to ask the old man to take Renxing on his journey back to his hometown when they discovered they and their maid are all due to leave town at the same time. The girl unwillingly begins what she sees as a tortuous cross-country journey by train, bus and finally on foot, and shows – perhaps in too contrived situations – all the hallmarks of the shallow, troublesome urbanite, ranging from her exclamation that she needs cosmetic surgery for the "disfigurement" of mosquito bites to her claims of wanting fame, fortune and a residence in New York as her objectives in life.

It's of course nearly inevitable that some kind of reconciliation will take place, and Li is instrumental in keeping the momentum going by never resorting easily to playing the frustrated but perennially generous granddad – his Zhigen has a cantankerous side to his general mix of generosity and melancholy (something which underlines his motive of making the trip in the first place), and Li balances Yang's sometimes excessively artificial turn with calibrations to the conversation and interaction.

Perhaps interestingly, The Nightingale also stops short of overplaying the exotic card: rather than building the two main protagonists' transformation through their inner self-rediscovery through a hackneyed naïvete of their new rustic friends, Muyl and co-producer Ning Ning's screenplay positions the locals as more than just bumpkins: Zhigen meets a young man who has studied overseas (in Bordeaux), while the film's climax, in which Renxing tries to get a local boy to trade something with her, has the ingenuous country kid chastising Renxing's iPhone 4S as being "so dated." Of course, this also perhaps rhymes with the official discourse of confirming how so-called modernization has reached even the far-flung corners of the country; still it's a conscious subversion of a cliché which at least briefly makes The Nightingale voicing a different tune.

Venue: ScreenSingapore
Production Companies: Pan Eurasia Films, Envision Films, Stellar Mega Films
Director: Philippe Muyl
Cast: Li Baotian, Yang Xinyi, Li Xiaoran, Qin Hao
Producer: Ning Ning, Qin Hong,Paul Delbecq, Steve Rene
Screenwriter: Philippe Muyl, Ning Ning
Director of Cinematography: Sun Ming
Editors: Kako Kelber, Manu de Sousa
Music: Armand Amar
International Sales: Kinology
In Mandarin, Guangxi-dialect Chinese and French
100 minutes

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The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug: Film Review

Nearly everything about "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" represents an improvement over the first installment of Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's beloved creation.

Beginning with the blessing of not being stuck with a bunch of hungry and thirsty dwarves in Bilbo Baggins' hut for a half-hour at the outset, nearly everything about The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug represents an improvement over the first installment of Peter Jackson's three-part adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's beloved creation. The “unexpected journey” launched in last Christmas' box-office behemoth becomes the heart of the matter this time around, making for plenty of peril, warfare, theme-park-ride-style escapes and little-guy courage. For Jackson and Warner Bros., it's another movie, another billion.

PHOTOS: 'The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug' Premiere Draws Peter Jackson, Orlando Bloom

After exhibiting an almost craven fidelity to his source material the first time out, Jackson gets the drama in gear here from the outset with a sense of storytelling that possesses palpable energy and purpose. Toward the end, his perennial tendency to let bloat creep in reasserts itself to an extent; as in the Lord of the Rings films, not to mention King Kong, he has a hard time knowing when enough is enough even as the three-hour goalpost looms dead ahead. But for the most part he moves the episodic tale along with reasonable speed for a leviathan while serving up enough fights, close shaves and action-filled melodrama for an old-fashioned movie serial or a modern video game.

Part two is almost entirely devoted to the dangerous expedition of 13 dwarves recruited by the wizard Gandalf with the aim of reinstating Thorin Oakenshield to his rightful place as monarch of the underground kingdom of Erebor, lost in the devastating battle that opened the first film. Although dangers lurk every step of the way — even more than exist in the book — the one looming over all is Smaug, a huge dragon that lives deep in the bowels of the Lonely Mountain who must be subdued if evil is to be denied an enduring triumph.

Although they have mined Tolkien's extensive appendices to The Lord of the Rings to flesh out the story — roughly nine hours will be expended in adapting a book of less than 300 pages — Jackson and habitual co-screenwriters Fran Walsh and Philippa Boyens, along with original intended director Guillermo del Toro, have further expanded the dramatis personae by recruiting Legolas from Rings and inventing a welcome female character named Tauriel, a foxy archer fancied by Legolas but who herself shows an interest in Kili, one of Thorin's companions. Women action figures and romantic subplots were not Tolkien's thing, so even the acknowledgment of sexual attraction represents a radical step in this context.

With prolonged exposure to this tale comes awareness of some of the premise's limitations as performed drama. There is incident and confrontation galore, beginning with the portentous, tavern-set opening scene in which Gandalf lights a fire under Thorin, followed by the dwarves' arrival at their first destination, the farm of the “skin-changer” Beorn, first seen in the form of a bear. Then, once Galdalf leaves them to their own devices, the diminutive ones must contend with the dangers lurking within the vast Mirkwood forest, foremost of which are giant spiders that quickly spin webs around the morsel-sized travelers. Always, they are stalked and, as often as not, attacked by the fearsome Orcs, muscle-bound uglies in league with Smaug to continue their dominion over Erebor.

PHOTOS: Elijah Wood in 'Hobbit' and 16 Other Cameos in Prequels, Reboots and Remakes

However, as one skirmish follows another, it becomes clear that suspense cannot be a factor here because the rules of the game mitigate against it. Where the elves are concerned, there is no danger because they are, by nature, immortal. This is not the case for the dwarves but, with the exception of one injury, the little guys consistently escape unharmed while the humongous and ferocious orcs go down as easily as shooting gallery ducks. Just as a token bow to credibility, you'd think a few dwarves might be sacrificed, but nope, they're all charmed.

With Ian McKellen's ever-imposing Gandalf bowing out for a long stretch on other pressing business (consult the appendices), it might seem that the heavy lifting would be taken up by Martin Freeman's slowly flowering Bilbo Baggins. At times it is. He does have a nose for gold, first in the form of the inevitable and mischievously errant ring, then with the treasures in the deepest sanctum of the ruined mountain kingdom now occupied by the slumbering titular dragon. Feeling his way, Bilbo gradually accepts the call to greatness Gandalf has thrust upon him.

Still, Bilbo also steps to the side through a middle stretch that provides time not only for Legolas (with a blond-tressed Orlando Bloom not missing a step, nor an arrow shot, since Ring) and Tauriel (a winning Evangeline Lilly, of TV's Lost) but for a significant layover in a port called Lake-town. The central player here is Bard (Luke Evans, excellent), a barge man and trader who smuggles the dwarves into a Middle Ages-style backwater in which working stiffs, struggling families, layabouts and criminals are lorded over by the smart and venal Master, brought to vibrant Dickensian life by Stephen Fry. As they are preoccupied by the real-world concerns of commerce, politics and personal intrigue rather than monsters, mythology and regal destiny, Bard and Master are the two most recognizably human characters in the film.

Once Bilbo provides the key to the kingdom under the mountain, his main order of business is to avoid being swallowed whole or burned to a crisp by the fire-bellied Smaug, who's almost too big for the human-built quarters he occupies. Like some Bond villains who talk too much instead of quickly offing 007 when they have the chance, Smaug seems much enamored with the sound of his own voice. And a fine voice it is, supplied by Benedict Cumberbatch, but too unnaturally deepened and electronically modified to afford pure enjoyment of the actor's menacing readings. The ending is a true cliffhanger, the resolution to which audiences will be lining up for on Dec. 17, 2014.

Visually, the predominance of CGI in most scenes is consistent not only with the previous entry but all the Rings films and too many of Jackson's and cinematographer Andrew Lesnie's carefully calibrated swooping and circling camera moves look like they were generated by a computer program. On the other hand, the distractingly vivid images provided by the 48 frames-per-second in the first film appear to have been massaged properly this time, and there is a notably lower-than-average reduction in image brightness when using the 3D glasses.

Production: New Line Cinema, MGM, Wingnut Films
Cast: Ian McKellen, Martin Freeman, Richard Armitage, Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, Lee Pace, Luke Evans, Stephen Fry, Ken Stott, James Nesbitt, Orlando Bloom, Mikael Persbrandt, Sylvester McCoy, Aidan Turner, Dean O'Gorman, Graham McTavish, Adam Brown, Peter Hambleton, John Callen, Mark Hadlow, Jed Brophy, William Kircher, Stephen Hunter, Ryan Gage, John Bell, Manu Bennett, Lawrence Makoare
Director: Peter Jackson
Screenwriters: Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Peter Jackson, Guillermo del Toro, based on the novel by J.R.R. Tolkien
Producers: Peter Jackson, Carolynne Cunningham, Zane Weiner, Fran Walsh
Executive producers: Alan Horn, Toby Emmerich, Ken Kamins, Carolyn Blackwood
Director of photography: Andrew Lesnie
Production designer: Dan Hennah
Costume designers: Bob Buck, Ann Maskrey, Richard Taylor
Editor: Jabez Olssen
Music: Howard Shore
Senior visual effects supervisor: Joe Letteri

Rated PG-13, 161 minutes

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